The Blinding Mask
by emeraldteardrops
Summary: Cowritten with Ghost of the Dawn. Sequel to Courting the Jester and an alternate sequel to Demons in the Doorway. As the Ronins struggle with their own demons, they find out things aren't always what they seem.
1. Chapter 1

This fic is a collaboration between Ghost of the Dawn and myself. It takes place approximately four months after Courting The Jester, and is an alternate continuation of the storyline six years after Demons in the Doorway. Therefore assume Guardian Souls never happened and this is a brand new story. However it will continue on with the CTJ plotline already written, and reading that story along with DitD is necessary for this one to make sense. We hope you enjoy our crossover.

**The Blinding Mask**

Chapter One

Life has a way of repeating itself. No matter how far you go and what you have done, you always find yourself right back where you started from. Yes, Rowen was back in that same coffee shop, watching with growing disgust as Sage lifted his tea to his lips, took one measured sip, swallowed slowly, and gently set the cup back down on the table. The same intervals, the same speeds, the same movements…Rowen wanted to jump up and grab him by the immaculately pressed collar and shake him. Maybe spill some of that tea on his bright white shirt, or heaven forbid, on his perfectly pleated pants. Could it be imagined? Sage. Pristine and flawless Sage, dirty? The horror! The despair! The absolute agony that such a walking ideal of absolute perfection could possibly succumb to the ultimate indignity of lowering himself to join the rest of the flawed and humbled world through such an unfortunate mishap of epic proportions---

"Rowen, quit it," Sage said calmly, picking up his tea cup and raising it to his lips. "Stop staring at me. You look like you want to throw my drink in my face."

Rowen's eyes widened and then narrowed.

"You're really creepy, you know that?" he muttered, slouching down in the booth and tapping his fingers impatiently against the tabletop. "And it wasn't your face, it was your pants."

Sage lifted one sculpted eyebrow at the comment, but kept his eyes on the newspaper he was reading.

"Rowen, haven't you learned anything?" Sage asked him, turning his attention back to his cup. "You will never be able to get involved in my pants. I just don't feel that way about you."

Rowen snorted at the comment, but kept one eye focused on his friend's face. It had been over three months since they had fought their way out of Damian's snares, and since then he had not seen a smile or heard a joke come from Sage's mouth even once. The fact that he was attempting now, even in such a blasé way, gave Rowen a small bit of hope. But then Rowen's face clouded over again as his original thought came back to mind.

"Sage? What are we doing here? Why do we come back to this same place all the time? Drinking this same garbage. Always sitting in the same booth. You always face the door and I always sit here and I'm forced to stare at the damn wall with the nasty nail sticking out of it. Why are we like this?"

Sage sipped his tea in the calm way that he knew annoyed his friend. It gave him a morbid pleasure for some reason.

"Because," he replied. "It's routine. And I believe it is good for us to get back into routine after being out of it for so long. "

"Why?" Rowen shot bitterly. "So we can forget what happened?"

Sage's eyebrow twitched behind his cup and Rowen wondered for a moment if he had over stepped with that comment. Not that he hadn't before. He had been less careful about speaking his mind to everyone the past several months. But in this, he knew he was hitting a painful cord in Sage--a pain he could only imagine. And he honestly did not want to tear that old wound open on his best friend if he could help it. Sage did not have to say anything. Rowen knew Sage didn't want to forget. And even if he could, he would never be able to.

"No," Sage replied quietly after a while. "It's so we can move on. Nothing good comes from dwelling on the past."

Now it was Rowen's turn to twitch. Sage was now taking a quiet jab at him for not being able to get over some of his own issues. Turnabout was fair play, but Rowen still frowned.

"Well can we at least try a different booth once in a while? I'm tired of this window seat. Nothing really ever--"

There was a tap on the glass from outside. Both young men looked out the window. A woman about their age was standing there. She had bright red hair that was cut shorter than they remembered it, to her shoulders, and she waved at them. Rowen and Sage stared at her stupidly, feeling as if they were looking at something too surreal to be true. The woman breathed on the glass, fogging it up. Then she drew a little heart with an arrow on it. When neither Rowen nor Sage made any motion to respond, she frowned and flipped her middle finger at them. It was then, Sage finally got out of his seat and headed for the door. Rowen stared a moment longer before following. The red head stayed by the window, hands on hips, as Sage came out the door.

"Reflex time is a little slow," Robyn commented with a smirk.

Sage said not a word as he closed the distance between them. Robyn was more than a bit surprised when he swept her up into a tight embrace.

"Robyn," he said quietly into her ear. "We missed you."

Now it was Robyn's turn to freeze for a moment. Such a physical display of affection from Sage was something she was unprepared for. It didn't seem like him. Not that Robyn minded. It had been years since they had seen each other. Sage was allowed to change between the time she had seen him last and this change seemed to be for the better so far.

"Oh, I missed you guys, too!" she said as she hugged him back. "It is so good to see you!" She laughed. "For a moment, I thought you didn't recognize me."

By then, Sage had put her down and was looking thoughtful. It was practically impossible to mistake that head of hair for anyone else in Japan.

"I think it was more like it was so unexpected to see you in the window, we weren't sure if it was real or not."

Robyn laughed again.

"No, I totally get it. If I was walking down the street back home and saw one of you guys across the way I probably would have stopped and starred for a good while, too." She paused and looked past Sage's frame to see Rowen coming out the door.

"Rowen! Hey!" Robyn called, jogging over to him. With Rowen being as tall as he was, Robyn had no hopes of hugging him around the neck. So she settled for throwing her arms around his torso instead. From where he was standing, Sage could see Rowen stiffen in her embrace. He saw the mixture of confusion and emotion that ran over Rowen's face as he wrestled with his inner feelings. Finally, he placed his hands awkwardly on Robyn's shoulders and that was all he did to return the embrace. Robyn didn't really seem to notice. She was too happy to see them.

"So how did you know we were here?" Sage asked as he came up behind her. Robyn turned to him and grinned.

"You know, I didn't. I just happened to be passing by. I almost missed you, but then I saw this." She gestured wildly like Rowen had been during his earlier tirade. Sage tried hard not to laugh while Rowen frowned. Then he cleared his throat.

"So what are you doing here, anyway?" Rowen asked.

Robyn tipped her head curiously at him. His tone sounded so accusing like she had done something wrong.

"What he means is," Sage stated, trying to fix Rowen's comment. "Is that none of us heard you were coming out here."

"Oh yeah, I didn't tell anyone about it," Robyn confirmed. "It was really last minute. I just got in yesterday, found my apartment, and then slept off the jet lag until this morning. I was going to call Cye and trying to get in touch with you guys later today."

"Yeah, Kento and Cye both are working today. You wouldn't be able to get a hold of them until tonight," Sage confirmed. "I think Ryo's out playing around somewhere. If you have time, we can go see if we can find him."

"That would be great!" Robyn beamed. "Yeah, I've got time. But don't let me put you guys out if you have other things to do."

Sage looked at Rowen who seemed indecisive about the whole thing. He wasn't prepared for this. Wounds were still healing. It was still too soon. He wasn't sure if he could take this on.

"I'm free," Sage offered. "I can take you. Rowen, if you have other things to do..." There, he did it, even though it was against his better judgment. Rowen needed a kick start back into the real world, but Sage gave him a window to escape anyway.

"No," Rowen said with a sigh in his voice. "I have time. Let's go."

Sage allowed himself a quiet smile. Maybe Rowen was ready to take a step in the right direction. But this time, Robyn did pick up on Rowen's mood.

"Rowen, are you okay? You're not looking very well. Do you feel alright?" She reached up to feel his forehead, but Rowen jerked away so she couldn't.

"I'm fine," he insisted. "Just..." He trailed off, mumbling something as he moved off to Sage's car.

Robyn looked to Sage for an explanation. The blonde just shrugged nonchalantly. To this, Robyn shrugged, too. Rowen was always a moody one when he didn't have his way. It could be any number of reasons he was acting like this. She could wait it out.

* * *

Ryo had stripped down to his waist, and his skin was slick with sweat as he moved across the basketball court behind his old high school, dodging an imaginary player as he dribbled. As he was weaving on the open court, Ryo narrated his own play. 

"Sanada races up the court! He fakes to the left! Oh! No one can touch him! He's wide open! He shoots!" He jumped up and lobbed the worn basketball unerringly into the hoop.

"And he scores! The fans go wild! The girls go crazy!" He made up his own audience sound affects as he went to get the ball and go for another play.

"Yeah! Ryo's my hero! Kya! Kya!" called a high, girly voice.

Ryo paused mid-dribble and looked behind him, surprised at the voice. It was familiar, but impossible. And yet, as he looked over, there was Rowen and Sage with a shorter red haired figure between them just a few yards away.

"Ryo!" Robyn squeaked happily and she darted away from Sage and Rowen, throwing herself at him. She wrapped her arms around his neck exuberantly and hugged him hard.

"Robyn!" Ryo grinned back. "Wow! No way!" He dropped the basketball to hug her back, but then quickly pulled away, realizing the state he was in.

"Uh, sorry," he apologized, wiping his sweaty palms on his shorts. "I bet that was kind of gross."

"I don't care," Robyn shot back. "Feels like I haven't seen you in forever! I want a hug!"

Shrugging, Ryo did as she requested and wrapped his arms around her. Robyn returned the embrace, enjoying the fact that at least one of them was short enough for her to get her arms around his neck.

"So how have you been?" Robyn asked.

Ryo grinned awkwardly into her hair. He wasn't sure how to answer that question. They were all alive. How was that for an answer?

"I'm ...okay," he finally managed to get out.

She pulled back so she could look him in the eyes. "Just okay?"

He shrugged, smiling. Robyn decided she would accept that as an answer for now. There would be time to better hear the details later. Ryo held her at arms length and looked her over.

"You look good, Robyn," he said automatically. And it was true. She looked a lot healthier than she had when they had first met her. Color was in her face, her eyes were bright and she was putting on weight, curving where young women were supposed to curve and it was pleasing to Ryo's eyes. Surprised at the comment, Robyn smirked back at him.

"What about you? Look at those abs." She poked him in the stomach. "Who you trying to impress? Trying to get lucky with the ladies?" She gave a sensual growl and a not so serious wagging of her eye brows. Ryo's face instantly flushed bright red.

"No…I just..." he stammered, then flushed even more as he darted off to grab his shirt. Robyn chuckled as he left.

"Oh, he is so fun to tease. That boy's too innocent for his own good."

"Hey now, be nice to my friend," Sage chided playfully. "He does the best he can."

"Stop talking about me like I'm not here," Ryo responded with the same humor. Sage raised his hands to Ryo, who promptly passed him the ball. Sage dribbled in place for a moment, then cut to Ryo's left, by-passing his leader and doing a lay-up. It started a game and Robyn fell back with Rowen to make room.

"You guys want to play?" Ryo asked over Sage's shoulder.

"Naw," Rowen replied. "Weak ankles."

Ryo snorted and Sage rolled his eyes. Rowen looked over at Robyn and winked at her. She grinned back. This was more like the Rowen she knew. Maybe he was feeling better now.

"Well since most of you know I'm here, do you want to try to get together with Cye and Kento tonight?" Robyn asked.

The ball slipped away from Ryo and Sage and bounced in Rowen's direction. He bent down and picked it up, idly spinning it in his hands before turning towards the hoop and shooting it. It bounced off the edge and went flying the other way. Ryo gave Rowen an exasperated look as he dashed off the opposite direction to catch it.

"Gee, Rowen, are you sure you don't want to play? You're so good, you know," he said sarcastically.

Rowen grinned. "No thanks, Ryo. I have a class to get to. I'll leave you ladies to your fun."

That comment was deliberately ignored but Rowen still winked at Robyn again. She smiled at him, waiting for him to bust out some sort of flirtatious suggestion, and Rowen seemed like he was going to indulge himself in some perviness. But whatever came to his tongue died there, and he gave her a tight grin.

"See you later Robyn," he said. "Let me know if you guys are all going to get together later. I don't want to miss out."

"Um, sure," Robyn replied, confused once again by his response. She watched Rowen turn and walk away. It took about twenty feet before he retreated inside himself, his head bent over, and his eyes flickering over the ground, not seeing a thing. Ten more feet and she could tell by his expression he had forgotten her completely. It shouldn't hurt, Robyn told herself, but it kind of did. Yeah, she had been the one to leave, but she was back now. Rowen had always been the one Robyn fell back on when she wanted friendly companionship. The old Rowen would have ditched class to hang out with her, as if he needed to go very often anyway, or would have tried to drag her to class with him. This Rowen had withdrawn, and Robyn already could tell she didn't like it. The guys were allowed to change, everyone did, but not in ways that weren't good for them.

"Hey, earth to Robyn," Ryo said, tapping her shoulder. Robyn started, caught up in her thoughts about Rowen.

"Huh?" she wondered, turning around.

"Sage asked if you needed a ride anywhere," Ryo repeated.

"Oh um, I don't really have anywhere I need to be right now...You guys wanna come see my place?"

"Okay! I'll go," Ryo agreed. "How about you, Sage?"

The blonde nodded. He didn't have much to do that day either. And it made the other two happy since he would obviously be their ride. The three of them set out of Sage's car.

"And we're getting together tonight, right?" Robyn clarified. "No one answered me earlier."

"Sure are!" Ryo agreed again. Sage glanced at his watch.

"I think Cye gets off in a couple of hours and then we can just head down to Kento's family's restaurant. That's where he works."

"Sounds like a plan," Robyn nodded, as they all got in the car. "Um... is Rowen okay? He didn't really seem like himself today. I thought maybe he wasn't feeling well but now...I don't know."

Ryo, who was in the passenger seat, looked at Sage as he started the car, not sure of what to say.

"Ignore him," Sage said frankly as they drove off. "Rowen's in one of his self-involved funks. He'll get over it."

Robyn couldn't see it, but Ryo's face didn't look convinced. Rowen had been that way for a while now. It was possible he wasn't ever going to "get over it". But Robyn didn't know that and let it be. She turned her attention to giving Sage directions to her place.

* * *

Rowen's hands were buried in his pockets, head down and lost in thought as he walked across campus. The tall building that housed the science department loomed over him, half threatening to those who didn't like to work, half welcoming to those who did, and entirely unconcerned with the students that passed beneath its shadow. If there was one thing university life had taught Rowen, it was that the individuals who regularly roamed the halls, attending classes and stressing about final exams, they rarely mattered. They were a by-product of the campus, fleas clinging to a dog, fighting for what they needed to survive, then moving on, unnoticed and unacknowledged. Almost six years he had spent on his higher education, and he could count on one hand the differences he had made in the school. Rowen knew he was lucky. Most students couldn't even say they had accomplished that much. 

Rowen barely raised his head as he entered the building, navigating the halls with an uncanny precision. He'd been asked before how it was that he could seem completely oblivious to where he was going and yet never run into people or lose his way. Rowen had always smiled and shrugged in reply. An actual answer would have required too much explanation and too private of information.

The truth of the matter was that Rowen could "feel" others in passing. It was so subtle it was almost an unconscious thing; someone would be approaching from the other direction and the air would shift, marking their passage. Rowen would instinctively feel the shift in his environment and adjust accordingly. It was a small thing, and Rowen had never really dwelled upon it. Rowen had never stopped to consider that it was an awareness brought on by his armor, and that if asked, the others would have no idea what he was talking about. Sage might have pointed out that it was not an ability acquired to enhance Rowen, but a survival response from the armor of Strata itself. In high school it wasn't uncommon for Rowen to randomly run into people when he wasn't paying attention. Even armors might have coping mechanisms, and prefer not to be jostled about unnecessarily. But the armor had never said, Rowen had never asked, Sage had never commented, and all of this was left un-thought as the blue haired man shifted sideways to let an undergrad pass by without bumping shoulders. She looked at him and gave him a sweet smile, the same smile she gave him every time she saw him wandering the halls, which Rowen forgot to notice. She shook her head with an amused expression as he passed, completely unaware.

Rowen unlocked the door to his group's research lab, slipping inside and closing the door behind him. Technically he was supposed to leave the door open if he was there, making himself available to the other students if they needed homework help. It was part of his duties as a graduate student, but Rowen wasn't in the mood to be helpful. A small desk in the corner had become his "spot", and the desk was covered in books waiting to be read and stacks of papers waiting to be graded. Rowen grabbed one of the books and sat down on his swivel chair, spinning slowly as he thumbed through the pages. He had a class in a few minutes and he should have read the required pages much earlier than this, but he hadn't been able to focus very much lately. After scanning two pages Rowen dropped the book in his lap with a soft curse, leaning back and staring around the room.

"Why the heck am I even here?" Rowen asked himself irritably. "Robyn's back in town. I should be with her right now."

But Rowen already knew the answer to that one. From the moment that Robyn had thrown her arms around him, Rowen had felt increasingly uncomfortable. He loved Robyn, she was…had been one of his very best friends. But things were different now, stuff had happened that none of them had really talked about, and that stuff had changed them all. Had changed him. And as much as he loved Robyn, Rowen wasn't sure he wanted those knowing eyes to stay on him for too long. Without prying, Robyn still had a way of finding out their darkest secrets. Robyn had looked great, healthy and happy. She had seemed so excited to see them, and from the small things that she had said while they went to find Ryo, her life was really good right now. The last thing Rowen wanted was for Robyn to see the reality of him right now.

He was just so…angry. After they had escaped the cave, Rowen had done a lot of soul searching. He had decided that he needed to make peace with both Mia and…her. He had set down his confusion and hurt and had been ready to make a peace offering. But then she had just…left. Even months later, the memories that had been returned to him swirled around in his head, intruding upon his thoughts when he least expected it. He could be sitting in a classroom, focused on the lecture in front of him, or driving down the road minding his own business, and then unexpectedly a memory would assault him. The feel of her skin, the smell of her perfume, the sound of her voice when there was no one else but them, the way she looked at him out of the corner of her eye, everything. The memories were old and sometimes hazy, but they cut deep. It left him feeling weakened and confused, distracted and lonely, and above all frustrated. Rowen knew he needed to let go of his anger, that it didn't help him, but he couldn't.

The campus bells chimed the turn of the hour, indicating that not only had Rowen been sitting silently lost in his thoughts for almost fifteen minutes without realizing it, but that he was also late to class. Instead of dashing out of the room, Rowen slowly stood, the unread book clasped to his side. He looked around. Not too long ago he had been sitting right here and his world had changed. As he shut off the lights and let himself out of the room, forcing himself to head towards the classes that he had once loved, Rowen knew exactly why Mia had done the things that she had done.

* * *

"Nice place," Ryo commented as he surveyed the inside of Robyn's new apartment. "It's..." 

"Sparse..?" Robyn helped with a laugh as she looked over the empty room and the bare walls. "Yeah, it's a bit empty and kind of small. But I like it. It's cute and cozy. I mean, I do have a couch and a bed. What more do I need?"

As Ryo and Robyn happily chatted, Sage wandered to the window and looked out. It seemed like a nice enough neighborhood. Then, Sage paused for a moment as a feeling came over him. Something about this place was setting off his sixth sense. He looked around him, both in the room and out the window. Nothing seemed immediately threatening and he calmed again. The feeling he had didn't feel neither good nor evil. It just seemed a bit unsettled. Which was fine; he had experienced places like that before, where the spirits weren't necessarily bad, just a little more active than usual and restless. The feeling passed and Sage thought no more of it.

The three friends hung around until it was about time for Cye to get off work. Sage had his number on his cell phone and was the one to call Torrent. Robyn laughed when she could hear Cye's exclamation at the news from her place on the couch. Sage had to hold the phone away from his ear at the outburst. After Cye had calmed down and stopped yelling at a smug Sage who refused to let Robyn on the phone to talk to him, he promised to meet them at Kento's family restaurant as soon as he was able.

Sage chuckled as he hung up the phone and Robyn wondered again about him. He had surprised her when she first ran into him and now. Not only did Rowen seem different, so was Sage. The blonde still seemed just as disgusted with the world as usual, but now, he seemed less inhibited. As if whatever he had been hiding or trying to avoid before had either been exposed or he just didn't care any more. It was something else Robyn could take time to analyze later.

Sage dialed one more number, letting Rowen know what their plans were, before the three of them headed out to the car. Robyn's mouth was watering by the time they reached the restaurant. She breathed in deep the familiar smells. She had missed this place. Not only the atmosphere, but the food was fantastic. They were greeted by the hostess as they came in and Sage told her how many people they were expecting.

Kento was out working the floor. When he glanced towards the entrance, he noticed Ryo standing there and waved to him. Ryo waved back and then pointed to the top of a red head who wasn't paying attention. Kento blinked a few times, trying to figure out who it was. Then he stared and started to walk forward as if on automatic. He had a tray in his hands and hastily shoved it into the stomach of a surprised young waiter. The waiter took it without complaint, obviously scared of Kento, who was bigger and his parents owned the place.

Robyn didn't even notice he was coming until a pair of huge arms wrapped around her and easily lifted her off her feet.

"Ah! Kento!" Robyn squealed and squirmed in his grasp. "Put me down!"

Kento did so, but the second he did, Robyn turned right around and hugged him, to which Kento returned.

"Hey Robyn! Where'd you come from? Why didn't you tell anyone you were coming back? Unless..." He shot a dark look to Ryo and Sage. If they knew and didn't tell him, there would be hell to pay.

"Oh, no no!" Ryo waved his hand nervously. "We didn't know either! We were all surprised! Honest!"

Kento let it go and turned back to Robyn, holding her at arm's length.

"Wow Robyn, how long has it been? Six years?"

Robyn shrugged. "Sounds about right. Sorry it took me so long to get back to see you guys."

"No worries," Kento grinned back. "It's a long ways away. I'm just glad you made it back at all." He looked her over. "Wow, you've really changed. You look kind of hot now."

Robyn's jaw dropped and she gaped at him. She looked a mixture of stunned and offended. Kento laughed and then hollered to earlier scared waiter that he was done for the day and was going to hang with his friends.

"Is that okay?" Ryo asked as they all sat down at a booth. "Just taking off from work like that?"

"It better be okay," Kento grouched. "I've pulled in SO many hours this week."

"Aw, my poor Kento," Robyn sympathized, rubbing his back.

Kento sighed and leaned into her, resting his head on her shoulder like a dog asking to be petted. Robyn happily obliged and rubbed his back some more and coddled him while across the table, Ryo and Sage looked on a bit jealously.

"Oh, there he is," Ryo announced, sitting up straighter.

Robyn perked up and looked behind her to the door. She saw Cye walk into the restaurant and look around and she squealed.

"Let me out! Let me out!" she ordered, now slapping Kento's arm, trying to get him to move out of the booth faster.

"Fine, fine!" he sighed, slowly pulling his tired body out, a bit disgruntled Cye was ruining the attention that he was getting.

Robyn quickly made her way over to him and even though Cye was much taller now, she jumped up so she could hug him around the neck. Cye grunted and took a step back as he caught her. She was a bit heavier than he remembered. Once he got his balance, he held her back as Robyn gushed over him.

"Oh Cye! It's SO great to see you! I missed you so much!" Robyn exclaimed, pulling away from him and grabbing his face in her hands. "Let me see you! Oh you've grown so handsome! Look at you! I love this face!" She pulled him in for Eskimo kisses and that was when Cye started struggling.

"Yes, yes! I got it! I got it! I'm happy to see you, too! Now let me go!"

Robyn didn't let him go and Cye had to practically drag her with him over to the table where his friends were all laughing at him.

"So when did you get in and why didn't you tell anyone?" Cye then asked, sitting on the same side of the booth as Kento with Robyn between them.

Robyn shrugged. "As I told Sage and Ryo, it was kind of last minute. I've been planning to come back to Japan for a while, but I wasn't sure when. Last week though, I came upon this great deal for an apartment when I was surfing for rooms on the internet and I couldn't pass it up. So I booked the place, got a plane ticket and came over. I just got in last night."

"So what are you gonna do here?" Kento then popped in. "You staying for a while or...?"

"I signed a three month lease with the apartment," Robyn replied. "I was thinking of just staying for the summer. There's some things I wanted to take care of here and, of course, see you guys. Tomorrow I'll probably go out and look for a job."

"So how can I get a hold of you?" Cye asked.

"I've got a phone at my place," Robyn replied. "Anyone have a pen?"

Sage pulled out one out of his pocket and Robyn scribbled a number down on a napkin and held it out. It was mostly in Cye's direction, but anyone at the table could easily grab it.

"Yoink!" Kento called as he snatched it and put it in his pocket.

"Kento!" Cye protested.

"Ha ha! Too slow, Cye. She's all mine now." Kento chided back.

"No worries here," Ryo piped up, looking smug. "I know where she lives."

Sage nodded and Cye frowned at all of them. It was then a thin, blue haired young man came in. He wasn't noticed until he sat himself at the booth next to Ryo and Sage.

"Sorry it took me so long, did I miss anything?" Rowen asked.

"Only Kento undressing me with his eyes," Robyn retorted.

Cye's eyes widened, then glared at Kento who sheepishly waved away the accusation, insisting that wasn't the case. Robyn laughed and everyone settled into friendly conversation as they ordered and ate their meals. Robyn was anxious to hear about how everyone was doing; who was studying what in school or working where. When asked about herself, she would give short answers in bored tones and immediately direct questions back at them.

Ryo worried about it for a while. He could tell from his friend's postures that they were worried Robyn was going to ask a question that would be hard for them to answer. And since they didn't know she was coming, they never had time to discuss it. Not that they hadn't had four months to discuss things already. In truth, this was what bothered Ryo the most. The fact that none of them ever talked about the events that had thrown their lives into a tailspin, or the crushing reality of the memories that had been returned to them. They especially didn't talk about that overwhelming awareness of their own limitations and weakness, brought on by their first true defeat. Yes they had still won, but not because of their strength as warriors. Everyone knew what had happened, but it was as if saying it out loud would somehow make it worse; make it feel more real. And thus, it was Ryo's opinion that none of his friends were healing and they were about as worse off as they were right after it happened.

But now they were going to have to discuss it at some point, weren't they? At least to consider what they were going to tell Robyn. Again, Ryo had the feeling his friends would not be in favor of telling her anything. They all wanted to continue living their lives that everything was okay; that none of them were hurting inside. Especially through Robyn, they wanted her to believe it so they could continue to believe it, too.

To the relief of the Ronins, Robyn's questions continued to be about every day things. No mention whatsoever of armors or fighting. Soon, everyone was relaxing more and happily answering her questions. It was refreshing for all of them to talk with someone who didn't know what had transpired a few months ago. Who didn't look at them just so, knowing they were all hiding something. Knowing that had been lying to themselves for months. Someone who didn't look at them with anger or pity or guilt.

That night, Ryo let it be. He let the pretend go on and found himself being swallowed in it as well. He missed talking and laughing and feeling safe and happy with those he cared about around him. It was worth it to avoid that one topic no one wanted to talk about. In that revelation, Ryo realized he really didn't want to tell Robyn what had happened to them. He didn't want to see the reaction on her face if she knew, even a little bit about it. He didn't want her to stop smiling at them and suddenly feel sorry for them instead. And he didn't want to take away this little bit of a sanctuary away from his friends. Let them go on pretending through her that everything was fine, even if it was just for these three months.

* * *

After dinner, Cye insisted Robyn come home with him to see his mother. Robyn was more than happy to oblige. Everyone else decided to come along and jumped in with those who owned vehicles and drove off to Cye's house. As she was let in, Robyn marveled how the place still seemed so familiar though it had been several years since she had been there. When Mrs. Mouri saw her standing in the living room, she gave a shrill cry, as did Robyn, and both ran to each other, hugging and crying while the young men all stood around awkwardly. Robyn didn't think she would cry when she saw any of them, but she couldn't help it this time. Mrs. Mouri was the closest thing to a mother she had ever had and coming back to this house was like coming home. 

After things had settled, Cye's mother stayed with them, chatting a bit. She really enjoyed having all of them in her house. It had been a while since they had all been in her living room like that. Even just the five Ronins. Since high school, it was hard to catch all five of them together at any given time. So she made sure to soak up the moment as much as she could. But as the night dragged on, Mrs. Mouri had to excuse herself to bed for she had to get up early. She made Robyn promise to come by again before heading upstairs.

After she left, the conversations grew quieter and far between. They all seemed fairly content just to sit in each other's company, whether they were talking or not. And Robyn may not have noticed, but the Ronins were talking volumes to each other just with their eyes as they tried to figure out what they were going to do about Robyn, if anything, while she was there. Maybe it would be best just to let things be as they were. But they would need some time to figure that out in greater detail later.

"Wow, it's late," Robyn finally realized, looking at her watch. "I completely lost track of the time. I need to get home soon."

"I don't know why you won't just come stay with us like you did before," Cye told her. "You know how much Mom would like that."

Robyn gave Cye a sweet smile and reached out, hugging his arm tightly. "That's really nice of you, Cye, but I don't want to impose. Plus it's kind of neat having my own place, making my own rules, going where I want to—hey, woah!" Robyn's eyes got big as she started squeezing his bicep curiously.

"Wow Cye, look at you! Mr. Muscle man now! What have you been doing, working out every day?" Cye blushed from pink to scarlet as Robyn began squeezing various parts of his body to see if the rest of him had become as rock hard as his arms. She grabbed his stomach, and Cye jumped back, swatting ineffectually at her.

"Robyn!" Cye sputtered, mortified, "Stop groping me!"

Robyn arched an eyebrow at him.

"Are you saying you don't like it?" She grinned evilly at him as she placed a hand on his knee and slid it up his thigh.

Cye made a shrill sound that none of his friends had heard him make in a long time. He jumped and grabbed her hands. "I said stop!"

Robyn laughed at Cye's face which had gone bright red. Kento was chuckling at her antics and even Sage look amused.

"Oh come on, Cye," Robyn joked, "Who died and made you such a prude?"

Cye went instantly still. Robyn didn't notice at first, intent on now finding the most ticklish spot she knew he had between two of his ribs. She did notice however when he grabbed her hand in a gentle but firm grip, his face flat of emotion. Robyn looked up at him in surprise, then noticed that the others had become very quiet. Kento was looking away, rubbing his head the way he did when he was particularly uncomfortable. Sage's face had gone stony, and his visible eye gleamed with an odd light. Ryo was looking at her with a mixture of sympathy and embarrassment. Rowen blinked as if he had missed the entire thing.

"What?" Robyn asked quietly, sobered. "What did I say?"

Kento cleared his throat, but no one said anything. Finally Ryo gave her a gentle smile and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"We've all kind of grown up, Robyn," Ryo said to her, turning her so that she faced him. "It's going to make us more serious. Plus things have happened these last few years. A friend of ours died a while ago." Ryo could almost feel the others flinching. This was not a topic they wanted brought up so soon, if not at all. But Ryo continued anyway, staying as vague as possible.

"It was very sudden and they were a very good friend of Cye's." Ryo left it at that, offering no other information.

"Oh," Robyn balked, looking surprised. "Wow, I had no idea. I'm sorry." She turned to Cye. "I didn't mean it that way. It was just an expression. But if I had known, I wouldn't have--"

"It's okay," Ryo said kindly, squeezing her around her shoulders. "You've been gone a long time, Robyn. There's no way you could have known."

"Don't worry about it," Cye added. "I know you didn't mean anything by it. I took it way out of context. It's my fault I--" He paused when Robyn leaned in to hug him tightly around the torso, tucking her head under his chin.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. "Please don't be sad."

A different emotion coursed through Cye's chest. It still hurt, but it wasn't the same grief. It was something else. Since remembering her death, no one had ever said a word to him about Cassie, not even Sage. None of them wanted to speak of that time or anything about it. It was like she hadn't really existed and it tore Cye up inside. But if he said anything, if Cye started it, he would bring a wave of unwanted emotions to everyone and he did not want to be the cause of it. So he bled silently inside himself, praying half that she, that THEY, had happened, and half that they hadn't.

For four months he had lived that way and he felt his heart grow cold and dead inside him despite the smile he plastered on his face. But then Robyn had showed up and his heart had stirred. He was reminded what it felt like to feel for someone dear to him outside his team. And he had never loved Robyn more than he did right that moment. Even though she had never met Cassie, never knew how Cye felt for her, Robyn was the only one. She was the only one who held him and said she was sorry it happened and to please not be sad.

Cye's arms instantly went around her and he embraced her fiercely. He closed his eyes as he rode the wave of emotion that washed over him. He still hadn't even been able to bring himself to cry over what had happened. His heart had been hardening to the point where he wondered if he could cry again. But now he felt something different. Something hurt and some pressure on his heart felt like it was releasing at the same time. And for a moment, he didn't want to ever let her go.

The group stayed quiet, letting them have their moment. Sage looked away, his face a mask void of any emotion.

"Well, I've got to bail, guys" Kento told the group as he got up and stretched. "I've got to get to the restaurant early tomorrow morning. There's a shipment coming in and it seems like they mess it up every week. I've got to make sure everything's alright." He reached out a hand to Robyn with a "Come here" and pulled her to her feet, hugging her and patting her back.

"It's good to have you back, Robyn," he told her. Robyn smiled into his shoulder as she tried to hug him back. The guy had gotten so massive, she could hardly fit her arms around him.

"It's good to be back," she said as she pulled back. "Too bad it's getting so late. I probably should go, too."

Everyone else was agreeing as they checked the time. They weren't teenagers any more. They were adults with adult responsibilities. They had jobs and school and no time for staying out all night like they used to when they were young.

"Do you want to get together tomorrow?" Robyn asked them all, but more Rowen specifically. Rowen had always been her partner in crime and she felt the urge to spend some quality time with him, especially since he hadn't spoken much all evening. Rowen seemed to have not heard her, a million miles away as he dug absently in his pockets for his keys.

"Rowen!" she raised her voice. His head snapped up, making his blue hair bob and fall messily across his forehead. He seemed surprised, but Robyn couldn't guess why.

"Uh, yeah. Sure, Robyn. Tomorrow," Rowen murmured.

Robyn threw a glare at him.

"That lacks the commitment I was hoping for," she stated, putting her hands on her hips.

Rowen stared at her for a second, then seemed to come to himself. He grinned ruefully at her and gave her a mocking half bow, grabbing her hand.

"Yes ma'am. I will be at your beck and call tomorrow. I will be desolate if you deny me the pleasure of your company. I will await eagerly for the very moment that I am allowed-" Rowen was cut out by a thump to the back of his head.

"Hey!" he protested, glaring at Sage.

"Leave her alone," Sage said mildly, also putting on his jacket. "And get going. You have class early tomorrow morning."

Rowen rolled his eyes and dropped Robyn's hand.

"Yes, mother," he replied sarcastically. Rowen gave them all a half wave and followed Kento out the door. Robyn didn't even realize until the blue head disappeared into the darkness that he hadn't given her a hug goodbye. The old Rowen used any excuse he could to hug on her, especially in front of Cye since he knew it bugged the Ronin of Torrent so much. She tried not to feel too disappointed.

Robyn turned back to the other three, who had formed a loose triangle in front of her. She smiled brightly. Instead of hugging them each individually, Robyn consolidated her efforts and threw her arms as wide as she could, managing to hug all three guys at once. Cye chuckled quietly and Ryo laughed outright. Robyn pulled back and gave them a small wave.

"Well, I'll be going now. I'll definitely give you guys a call when I'm done job hunting." She started to turn, but a hand on her elbow stopped her.

"Hold up, Robyn," Sage said, his fingers light on her arm. "One of us will walk you home."

"Oh no," Robyn started to object, "Don't worry about it. I'm perfectly fine. I can just take the subway and-"

Sage's hand tightened slightly, although still gentle enough not to cause her discomfort. Robyn had the distinct feeling that the light grip couldn't be pried off with a crowbar.

"We will take you home," Sage repeated, half to himself, half to the others. They nodded seriously.

"Uh, okay…" Robyn agreed, kind of confused. She raised an eyebrow at the three suspiciously, but let it slide.

Ryo flushed slightly at the look she was giving them. Robyn had never liked being told what to do. But she had grown up too, and she was more patient and tolerant than she used to be, so she didn't make a fuss about their protectiveness. In fact, one look at both Sage and Cye's grim expressions, Robyn didn't feel like contradicting them at all. Things were different now, they were different. They seemed the same on the surface, but underneath her friends had become…harder.

"I can do it," Ryo offered. "I live only a few blocks over. It's on my way."

It was only then did Sage let go of her arm, satisfied. Again, Robyn gave the blonde a curious look. He still did things that confused her and never offered any explanation. Maybe he hadn't changed as much as Robyn initially thought.

Robyn waved to the remaining two Ronins one last time before she and Ryo disappeared out the door. This left Cye and Sage alone together in the stillness. Cye shifted in the awkward moment. There hadn't been a time the two of them had been alone together after the incident. They tried their best not to make it happen. It had been awkward at times when Cassie was alive. Now, the stillness was almost unbearable.

Cye's insides were churning. Ever since Robyn's earlier comment, he wanted to say something. He was dying to say something. And now that it was just him and Sage, he could finally speak to the one person who understood his grief.

Cye opened his mouth and Sage turned his back, grabbing his jacket.

"Good night, Cye," Sage said, his face as blank as ever. With that, he was gone. Cye listened to the door shutting behind him and then was left alone in silence.

* * *

Ryo and Robyn spent the subway trip in comfortable silence. It was late and neither had much energy to continue with their earlier happy chatter. Ryo didn't mind. He wasn't much of a talker anyway. He was usually content to just sit around and enjoy the others' company while they talked. Robyn herself, while a talker, was probably still trying to adjust to the time zone. They were only a few minutes into the ride when her head slumped over onto his shoulder. Ryo smiled at that. How was it that she had been gone so long, and so much had happened without her, but she could go right back to being the way she was? She made it feel like no time had passed at all. Half asleep, Robyn slipped her arm through his and snuggled closer to him. 

Ryo looked down at the top of her head. He remembered back then when she had suddenly left them, left the entire country, without any warning whatsoever. He remembered how his friends reacted when they found out. Some of them were angry, some were sad, others confused. And yet, the truth was, Robyn had unknowingly dodged a bullet by running. A large, ravaging bullet that would have changed her forever. Maybe even killed her.

A shadow fell over Ryo's face as he thought about what had already happened to those who had been involved. Both the Ronins and their friends. He fervently wished nothing like that would ever happen again and no more people he cared about would be sucked into such a nightmare. If Robyn had still been living with them at that time...Ryo didn't even want to try to imagine.

The subway doors hissed open and Ryo grabbed Robyn's shoulders, pulling her awake and to her feet, lest they miss their stop. Once out in the cool night air, Robyn had an easier time staying awake. Ryo walked next to Robyn, his hands in his pockets, his shoulders relaxed and his stance easy. Every once in a while he would playfully bump into her when she wasn't expecting it, keeping her on her toes. Robyn would laugh each time and thump him back. This was the Ryo she was used to: happy, fun-loving, quiet and gentle. He seemed more outgoing than before, holding his head higher. Gone was the uncomfortable and awkward backwoods boy and in his place was a man secure in who he was, but still the same Ryo. Robyn was about to say so, turning and opening her mouth. Something about Ryo made her clamped her mouth shut, however, and she watched him out of the corner of her vision.

Ryo's eyes were sweeping the city streets systematically, moving right to left, top to bottom, before returning to start over again. As relaxed as he seemed to be, Ryo was definitely on edge, like he expected them to be attacked at any moment. Robyn added that to the long list of things that had been confusing her lately.

"Ryo?" she ventured. Ryo looked at her curiously, catching the tone of uncertainty in her voice. Robyn decided to not skirt the issue.

"Ryo, are we safe here?"

The question seemed to catch Ryo off guard, and he didn't respond immediately. They walked a bit further as he formulated a cautious reply.

"Why would you think we wouldn't be safe?" he asked, his voice deliberately light.

"Because you're watching everything like you might be expecting something to happen." That was blunt enough. Ryo looked at her seriously, then a small rueful smile touched his lips.

"Straight to the point as always," Ryo murmured. He shook his head, looking at the ground before him thoughtfully. "Would it be a good enough answer to say that it's best to be cautious, and not be caught by surprise?"

"Depends," Robyn answered. "Is that a real reason or a half reason?"

"Both. No, I don't expect to be attacked right now, just like I don't expect to be mugged right now or to fall down and break my arm on the sidewalk. But I also don't want to assume we won't find trouble, and end up getting both of us hurt."

"Which is a real reason," Robyn stated. "So what's the rest of the half reason?"

Bright blue eyes regarded her solemnly, then Ryo sighed, seeming to sink within himself. A deep sadness crossed his eyes, and he suddenly looked much older than he was. His shoulders slumped momentarily, but quickly straightened. He shook himself and gave her a comforting smile.

"We missed you Robyn. We love you and we finally get to see you again after all this time. So we will be protective and walk you home at night because we want you to be safe. To me that's a good enough reason."

The tone in his voice was final and Ryo lapsed into silence. Robyn digested his words as they walked. He didn't really answer her question, but there was still an answer in there and Robyn decided to accept it. If Ryo wanted to keep them from getting in trouble, then by all means. She had a natural tendency to end up in questionable situations, and it wouldn't hurt to have someone watch her back. In fact it was kind of nice, giving her a warm fuzzy feeling that pushed away her curiosity. Robyn slipped her arm through Ryo's as they neared her apartment building, bumping him with her hip, causing him to stumble slightly.

"So that's how it is, is it?" he asked her jokingly, grabbing her around the waist and picking her up, half swinging/half dragging her while Robyn laughed and hit at his arm.

"Ryo!" she laughed as he lifted her higher and partially carried her up the front steps of her complex. "Put me down!" Her feet touched ground and Robyn regained her balance, grinning.

"Thanks for walking me home, and I use the term "walking" lightly," Robyn joked.

Ryo chuckled. "Do you want me to go up there with you?" he offered.

Robyn cocked an eyebrow at him.

"Reeeally?" she replied suggestively. "I didn't think you were that kind of person, Ryo."

Ryo looked confused for a moment, then realized his choice of words and blushed crimson.

"No…" he stuttered, embarrassed. "Not like that! I didn't mean-"

"I'm glad some things don't change," Robyn laughed, fishing out her keys.

Ryo pouted a little, shoving his hands in his pockets, looking like he didn't appreciate it at all. That just made Robyn grin at him some more.

"Well, good night Ryo. Thanks again."

"Hold on," Ryo said, pulling out a piece of paper. "Now don't take this the wrong way, too," he insisted, pulling the paper away from her grasp for a second longer. "But this has my number. I live just a few blocks from here. If you need anything, you call me, okay? Or..." He gave her a light smile. "Even if you don't need anything, you can still call me."

"Got it," Robyn nodded, taking the paper. "I promise I'll use it sometime."

"I'll hold you to that," Ryo nodded with a smile.

Robyn nodded again, lingering on her door step. Ryo remained where he was as well and the two fell into an odd silence for a moment, unsure of how to break away.

Finally, Robyn stepped forward, putting her arms around his neck.

"It really is so good to see you guys again," she said into his shoulder.

Ryo smiled as he put his arms around her. But then he felt her hold on his tighten, her shoulders shuddering a bit. And he heard the smile leave her voice.

"I've missed you all so much," she whispered.

In that voice, Ryo felt the shadow of the sad, scared girl he had met six years ago. She was still in there somewhere just as the old Ryo was still inside him. The same, he hoped to be said of his scarred friends as well. He held Robyn back tightly for a moment before she pulled away, her eyes glistening wetly with tears threatening to spill over.

"Sorry," she said in embarrassment as she hastily rubbed her eyes. "I tried not to be a baby about this, I really did."

"It's okay," Ryo confirmed as he placed a friendly hand on top of her head. "It's been quite a day."

Robyn had to agree with that and she wished him one final good night and to walk home safely before going inside.

Ryo watched as she disappeared behind her door. Then he turned and stepped away, pausing to look up at the buildings around him. Several other apartments, a modest house that looked like it might have once been a used as a shop, and various small restaurants stretched in each direction, all normal. Ryo thought back to those tears in Robyn's eyes. Even if those were happy tears, seeing a woman cry always made Ryo's chest hurt. He suppressed the urge to go up and get Robyn and take her back with him, to plop her down between all of them. He wanted to make sure that nothing like what had happened with Mia, Cassie, and Nikki happened to her. He never wanted to see her cry the way he had seen them. Especially Mia…

Ryo's thoughts turned dark as he drifted back to the events from four months ago, and he scanned Robyn's neighborhood once more intently. Finally he decided that there was nothing wrong here, not the best neighborhood, but it was safe and not to far from where his own apartment was as well. If he had to, he could be back here fast. Robyn had his number, and she'd call if she needed him. Having reassured himself sufficiently, Ryo started walking home.


	2. Chapter 2

**The Blinding Mask**

Chapter Two

Robyn stepped out of her apartment, bright-eyed and full of energy. Today was the day she was going to get a job, she could feel it. Tucking a few strands of hair behind her ear, she shouldered her bag and headed out. She had a newspaper tucked under her arm, full of ads circled in blue, all jobs that she knew she would love to have. Not that Robyn was going to be too picky, she badly needed a job if she wanted to be able to keep her apartment and afford a ticket back to the States. But she didn't want to work at just any old place, either.

There was a momentary lapse in her confidence and Robyn wondered what she would do if she didn't make enough money to get back. Maybe she should have waited another year to do this when she had more money saved. Job hunting wasn't exactly one of her favorite past times, either. The whole ordeal seemed a bit daunting, but Robyn shook her head at herself. She would get nowhere thinking like that. She steeled herself again and started out towards the bus stop.

"Excuse me," a male voice called in her direction.

Robyn turned around to see two men walking towards her. They looked a bit older than her. Maybe in their early thirties. Having lived alone as a single

woman for a while, Robyn was instantly paranoid about being approached by two males when she was all by herself. But the friendly way they greeted her made her relax slightly.

"Hello, sorry to bother you," one of them said. "I know this sounds silly, but we were wondering if you could settle a bet for us. I live across the street and I saw you move in the other day. The two of us have this little wager going as to whether or not you're Japanese. I know it's horrible, but could you settle that for us?"

Robyn smiled at them. "Yes, I am Japanese, actually. I was born here and both my parents are Japanese."

"See?" said the one who had been doing all the talking. "I told you. Her Japanese is beautiful." He then turned to address her. "Your Japanese is beautiful."

Robyn laughed. "Thanks!"

The two thanked her for her time and walked off. Robyn thought little else of the conversation as she got on the bus and headed off to her first destination with hopes high.

* * *

By late afternoon, Robyn had returned to her apartment, dejected and frowning. She pulled her red pen out and drew a big red cross mark over the final happy blue circle. It was the last job she had circled, the one that she had wanted the least, and even that one had sent her away empty-handed. She then threw the paper on the floor before throwing herself on the couch and sighing heavily. Her feet hurt and she was depressed that no one even wanted to have her return for a second interview.

She never would have imagined it would be so hard to get a job. Robyn had completed several years of college and was qualified enough. She was also very fluent in Japanese which made up for her non-Japanese appearance. It was the time frame she gave that got her. No one wanted to hire somebody who was only going to be in the country for less than three months. She considered lying about that, but then she knew she would feel guilty the entire time she worked there. No, she didn't want to do that.

Robyn buried her face further into the couch cushions and moaned to herself, kicking off her shoes. She had definitely had better days than this. The whole affair had left her disheartened and drained. It left her with very little energy to invest it in anything else.

BRRING!!!

The phone on the table right next to her exploded loudly, making Robyn jump in surprise. That was the first time she had heard her apartment phone ring and she wasn't prepared for such a sound. Robyn stared at the phone in surprise, wondering just how in the world it could ring that loudly. The phone replied by another BRRING!!!, making her jump again. This time she lurched for the receiver.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Robyn," came a male voice over the line. "It's Rowen."

A smile slowly spread to Robyn's face, lifting her spirits a little. She had almost forgotten she asked Rowen to call her the previous night. In truth, the way he had acted made her doubtful he would. So his phone call was a double surprise. If only she knew just how long Rowen had stared at his own phone, wondering if he should call her before he did.

"Hi Rowen! I got just back. Good timing, huh?"

"Yeah." Rowen's voice held that slightly distracted tone it had the day before, but he seemed more attentive this time. "How did job hunting go?"

Robyn moaned again as she was reminded of her day. "Oh, it was horrible, Rowen. I am so tired. If you hadn't called I probably would have slipped off into a void of complete depression."

"Wow, good thing I called then," Rowen responded, sounding slightly amused and a bit more like his old self.

"Yeah, you might not have ever heard from me again if that had happened," Robyn joked back.

"So, would you like me to come pick you up or something?" he asked.

"Yes. Please do," Robyn replied gratefully. "You're like, my hero right now."

The line went silent for a while, then Rowen asked her where she lived. Robyn shook her head and let it slide. Boys were so weird sometimes.

After giving him directions she hung up the phone. Next, she went to her closet and pulled out a more comfortable shirt and an old pair of jeans, pulling them on before tying her shoulder length hair up into a loose ponytail. Robyn had never been much of a makeup girl but she had worn some for her job interviews and didn't feel like washing it off. So she was ready way before the buzz came, indicating that Rowen was downstairs waiting to get in. Robyn pressed the button that was supposed to let her talk to Rowen, frowning when it didn't work.

The buzzer kept ringing. Robyn frowned again as it hummed obnoxiously in her ear.

Darting across the apartment, she stuck her head out the window and looked down at the blue haired man pressing the button repeatedly below.

"Hey!" Robyn called. "The button doesn't work from this end! I'm coming down!"

Rowen looked up at her and grinned mischievously. Then he squashed his hand down on the buzzer, holding it. The loud noise resounded irritatingly across her apartment as Robyn grabbed her purse and coat and dashed to the door, muttering to herself.

"Hey you jerk!," she called as she came out of the building.

Rowen gave the buzzer one last satisfying push, a small smile on his face.

"Stop that, you're going to piss off my neighbors," Robyn warned. "You have no idea how loud that thing is."

"Actually I do," Rowen said with a smirk. "I could hear it from the street. That's why I kept doing it."

Robyn rolled her eyes at him. "You are so retarded."

"Hey, like you can talk. I've seen how mature you can be," Rowen shot back with a smile.

Robyn tried to fight it, but a smile came out anyway. Yes, she had to admit both of them had done some pretty stupid stuff in their days. And she was just glad to see Rowen smiling. He definitely looked in a better mood today, standing easy and relaxed.

"Come on," he said, throwing a friendly arm around her shoulders.

Robyn grinned back and let him lead her down to the car, happy that he had his arm around her. It felt good, especially with the lack of contact yesterday.

Rowen opened the door for her, wincing at the loud squeak it made. Robyn looked at the vehicle dubiously. It barely seemed like it would run, and large spots of rust gave it the general appearance of an unruly cow. Rowen seemed to notice her hesitation and looked a bit hurt.

"Hey, it's not that bad," he protested.

"Of course not," Robyn replied mildly, climbing in. She reached for the seat belt, only to find out it was missing.

Rowen climbed in next to her and gave her a rueful grin.

"Sorry about that, it came that way."

Robyn rolled her eyes and locked her fingers into the cushion beneath her.

"Drive careful, Rowen," she ordered.

"I promise, no sudden stops," Rowen agreed as they started off. "You're doing better than Sage did. I drove him around once and he insisted on sitting in the back the whole time."

Robyn chuckled. "That sounds like Sage. He's fine if he drives you through a hundred mile an hour chase around the city. But if you want to drive him to the store, he has to be doubly buckled up."

Rowen nodded. "So where do you want to go?"

"Oh, some place to get food," Robyn said as she massaged her temples. "I'm starting to get a headache."

Rowen glanced over at her and noticed she suddenly looked very tired. "I'm sorry you had such a bad day."

"Eh," Robyn brushed it off with a wave. "Don't worry about it. The bad part's already over."

'_Bad part's already over, huh?'_ Rowen thought to himself. _'If that's true, then why am I still bothered by it?'_

* * *

Rowen wasn't really hungry, but being Rowen, he could always eat something. He was also reveling in the fact that they weren't at the coffee shop or Kento's restaurant and he finally got a change of scenery.

"So," Robyn said as she poured dressing on her salad. "Last night was pretty crazy, huh? All of us trying to catch up all at once, it was information overload."

"Yeah, it was pretty insane," Rowen agreed. "You definitely caught us all off guard."

Robyn smiled faintly, looking thoughtful. "Is that why you were so quiet last night?"

Rowen shifted uncomfortably in his chair. "Yeah, a bit. It felt kind of surreal, you know? I was still trying to let it all soak in when I went home last night." _And you scare me. I'm not sure I'm ready for this. I don't want you to know..._

"Well now that you've had time to process it all," Robyn replied. "Tell me, how is it that all five of you are still single?"

Rowen just looked at her.

"I figured at least one of you would have gotten married by now," Robyn went on. "It's been six years. I didn't even hear anything about anyone having a girlfriend last night. What is up with that?"

Rowen's face paled a little. He wasn't expecting this kind of question. Though, if he really thought about it, it was something anyone would wonder. What if she had asked that question of Cye or Sage? It would have been far worse then. How should he answer? He had to think.

"Yeah Robyn, you caught us," Rowen replied, trying to remain calm. "It had to come out sooner or later. We're all gay."

Robyn broke into laughter. "With each other, right?" she snorted.

Rowen nodded as seriously as he could and Robyn tried to fight back another fit of the giggles. For some reason, it made Rowen feel good that Robyn didn't believe him.

"What about you?" Rowen then pressed. "I didn't hear you mention a boyfriend either. Lesbian."

Robyn kept laughing. It took her a couple minutes to get settled down again.

"Oh man, that's funny," Robyn sighed as she wiped away a tear. "But if you don't want me to pry, I won't pry. I just thought it was odd, that's all. The girls around here must be crazy not to want to hold onto any of you."

"You sound almost disappointed," Rowen noticed.

"Well you know," Robyn waved him off. "You have high hopes for someone and they let you down..."

Rowen chuckled and went back to his meal, letting it drop and praying it didn't come up again. In truth, he didn't mind telling her about it. In fact, a bit of him wanted to. He and Robyn had always talked honestly to each other about everything. He wouldn't have minded telling her that there had been someone, that the relationship had been rocky, but he had had fun anyway. He didn't mind telling her that it was over and he wished it wasn't. But he knew as soon as he got into it, more questions would come. Questions he wasn't ready to answer. So he had to keep quiet. And thinking of that reminded Rowen that he and the other guys needed to talk about Robyn and just what exactly they were willing to tell her, if anything, and how they were going to do it.

After eating, they went back to Rowen's rusted car. Rowen was about to turn the key when Robyn turned her gaze on him.

"You look older," she said simply. "I mean, I know you're older than last I saw you, but you look older. Like you have seen so much more than you were meant to see these past few years."

Robyn reached for him and Rowen surprised himself by actually shrinking away from her a bit, his eyes wide. But Robyn came forward still, running her fingers through his hair. She pushed back his bangs so she could look clearly into his eyes and Rowen had nowhere to retreat.

"That look," Robyn mumbled softly. "I see that same look in the other's eyes, it's like..."

Rowen held his breath, feeling like her next words would mean his full exposure for what he was trying to hide. But instead, Robyn's eyes darted down to his neck and Rowen realized she had been purposefully distracting him. By the time she reached the collar of his turtleneck, Rowen was too late to stop her. She hooked it with a finger, successfully tugging it down and revealing his scar.

"Holy shit Rowen!" Robyn exclaimed when she got a full view of the vicious scar running down his neck. It was dark purple and slightly indented, as if a chunk had been taken out. "What happened? Who did this to you?"

Rowen broke free from her grasp, pulling his collar back up. "It's nothing, don't worry about it."

"Nothing?" Robyn asked with raised eye brows. "Nothing my ass! It looks like you almost got your throat ripped out! Why don't you want to tell me what happened?"

Rowen's face expression hardened right before her eyes. "Because it's none of your business, okay?"

"None of my business?" Robyn shot back. "Don't you think I have the right to know when one of my closest friends almost dies?"

"Hey, I don't have to tell you every thing that's happened while you were away Robyn! YOU left US, remember? It's not my fault you weren't there, okay? Hell, I'm _glad_ you weren't there!" He muttered an oath far worse than anything she had ever heard from him.

Robyn opened her mouth to retort, but then closed it again and folded her hands in her lap, leaving Rowen with the last word. He was breathing hard in the silence, momentarily swept up in his own frustrations before he realized what he had just allowed to escape. Robyn just sat there quietly, looking straight forward. Her face was a mask, devoid of all emotion, but Rowen knew he would be lying to himself if he thought for one minute he didn't just hurt her feelings right then.

"Look, I'm sorry," he said roughly, still having a hard time trying to control the anger in his voice. "I'm just going to take you home now, okay?"

Robyn didn't respond and Rowen started the car anyway.

"If I had been there…," Robyn said quietly. Her brows furrowed angrily for a moment. "I would have killed them."

"No," Rowen whispered in a tight voice, gripping the steering wheel beneath whitened knuckles. "It would have killed you first."

* * *

The beaches were packed this time of year in Japan, and everyone was out trying to soak up as much sun as they possibly could. Stretching up and down the sand, brightly colored bikinis and tanned flesh could be seen relaxing and running, playing and swimming. That was what most people came to the ocean for. But that was not what he had come for. The beaches stretched for miles, and further up the coast the land dropped off more dramatically into the ocean. Here, there were no beaches to enjoy; only rocky earth and tightly clustered vegetation. The water was deep; well beyond the reaches of toes even as one first slipped into the cool calm liquid, and the dense trees gave it a feeling of complete solitude. That was what he had come for.

Cye had spent a lot of his time working as a lifeguard on the public beaches. He would have strongly advised anyone who happened to be swimming where he was right now that it was dangerous; that the water was too deep and the currents here too strong. But it never occurred to him to fear the same things he would fear for others. The water was not his enemy. It had never been his enemy. Should he be pulled beneath the surface, it would not matter; and should the loving arms of the ocean coax him down further into its depths, that too was alright. Because water was Cye's element. He had but to ask, and he would be released back up into his own world, a world he had found increasingly suffocating and colorless.

It was bizarre, he knew, that he could sink down towards the bottom of the seabed, the ocean draped heavily over his body with more pressure than the average human body could take. It surrounded him by a pitch blackness only broken by that far off speck of light indicating the surface. It was strange that only here, in his solitude and his darkness did he feel at peace. It was the bright and cheerful world far above him that made him cringe, that pushed and tightened in on him, oppressive and grim. It was here where he would go when he couldn't stop remembering…her.

Sometimes Cye liked to close his eyes when he was down here, blocking out that one small dot of light, and pretend that he lived in the same kind of world that she had. That he had her strength and serenity. That he could adjust just as well as she had, but deep down Cye knew that it was different. He chose to float in a sea of darkness, Cassie never had such a choice. And, as always, Cye eventually had to leave it. Though the water was familiar, his body still craved the light. He needed it and could only imagine what it was like to never have it. Despite his every effort, he couldn't stop himself. He had to go back up to it every time. Maybe that's why he still couldn't bring himself to blame her.

Today, however, it felt different.

He had been down here for a few hours now, hundreds of feet below the surface, in a place where the currents were still. Cye had been sinking steadily the entire time, watching that dot above him slowly disappear. He had never gone this deep before; certainly not without any kind of gear on. Cye had found out a long time ago that he didn't need oxygen to breathe under water. When he was younger he had needed it; when they were fighting Talpa and the warlords. Certainly he could hold his breath far longer than the others could, but he was still human and needed air. When he was older and had swum to Africa, it had amazed him how long he could swim and how far between breathes, but he always eventually had need to break for air. But now? Now everything was different. Cye wasn't sure if it was these new armors, or if it was just him; just his body's reaction to being exposed to Torrent for so long that was changing him. The old armors had worn down on them, even as they made the Ronins stronger. But these new armors? They were like children, learning and growing and stretching further every day.

Cye hadn't even realized how much of his mind had been shut off from the spell Mia had used on them, and he'd never known how disconnected he had been with his new armor when he had received it. Sure it had made him uneasy and distracted, they had all been like that. It wasn't until later that the armors had been screaming at them to listen, to understand that they were missing a part of themselves that the armors wanted back. The armors wanted whole bearers, not just a part. The armor of Torrent had reveled that in the return of Cye's memories, as the last barriers between them were broken down. It was funny, his armor rejoiced that they were now made whole and yet Cye had never felt so empty and alone in his entire life.

God, how he missed her…

Cye knew he was drifting too deep, that even his body could only take so much, but at the moment, he really didn't care. The slowly building pressure in his chest and his limbs matched the raw, torn feeling that he carried around with him every day. Cye had known grief in his life, had seen people he cared about die and he had mourned them, but with Cassie it was different. He had lived through her death not once but twice, and the time lapse between the repressed memories and the new ones wasn't enough to diminish the pain. In the cave the second time, or in the room the first, he had seen her die. He had seen her ripped apart to save their lives twice, had seen the agony in her eyes and heard her whisper his name twice. It was the whisper that hurt him the most and made the raw torn feeling expand, tearing him to shreds more completely than Cassie's fate had been. He had let her die with his name on her lips.

Cye sank into his grief, letting it fill him. This was the only place he could be like this. Everyone was hurting right now and no one wanted to admit it. No one wanted to say out loud that it was real. Even him. Cye had never even said her name out loud since getting his memories back. Even though Cassie's name, her face, everything about her were never far from his thoughts.

The previous night when they were all at his house, Ryo had said a friend of his had died. That was the closest anyone had ever been to acknowledging her death. To admitting they knew someone was gone and they knew it hurt him. The rest felt like white noise. It was something in the background everyone knew, but no one wanted to put a name to it. No one wanted to say the words–those excruciating horrible words that, for some reason, Cye was dying to hear.

He closed his eyes and slowly rolled over in a circle, feeling the water move around him lazily. It liked him being down here, it enjoyed his presence and never asked anything of him. And down here, where there was only fish and other sea creatures, the constant barrage of his senses finally stopped.

His empathy. It was another thing they didn't talk about. Cye was developing a second power and he was increasingly growing worried about what it would do to him. It felt more like a curse than a blessing at times. How could anyone want the power to feel the emotions of others? Weren't ones own raging emotions confusing enough? And, much to Cye's dismay, the more he was around people, the more he could feel this power growing.

At first it had just been whoever was next to him. But then it pushed out to include everyone that was around him, sudden thoughts and emotions coming at him from all directions. Excitement, sadness, worry, joy. All at the same time. Some days were worse than others, but it was getting to the point where Cye spent more time trying to suppress his powers than develop them. It was just too hard to cope. And through them, Cye began wondering if he was a good person. How could he be? When he felt others' happiness, he would become bitter and jealous. When he felt others' pain, all he could think was their pain wasn't as great as his. And when he was around the other Ronins, Cye did his damndest not to let in any of their feelings.

Cye knew Ryo was sad about his tiger…Cye missed White Blaze too. But a tiger wasn't a person, and to him the loss just didn't compare. And Rowen's manic depressive anger over Nikki made Cye want to shake him. Didn't he understand that at least Nikki was still alive? That he wasted so much energy being hurt and angry when he should be thankful that they didn't lose her too? Heartache rolled off of Kento in waves, despite his stubbornness, but Cye didn't want to care. And when he was close to Sage…the one person who understood his pain the most was the one person Cye didn't want to understand. It was an issue they had never really dealt with, had never had the luxury to deal with between the fighting and the suffering. Cye didn't want to pick up on Sage's feelings at all, he wasn't ready yet for that part of it. The only one that he could empathically handle these days seemed to be Mia.

Mia. There was something about her that deeply disturbed Cye. Where everyone else radiated emotions, barely containing them to a reasonable level, Mia had stood alone. When he was close to her, he felt nothing. She was like stone, immovable and indifferent, and when she had used the seal on…him…the only thing that Cye had felt from her was an overwhelming sense of justice. Sometimes little bits flickered through here or there, squeezing through the cracks, reassuring Cye that Mia hadn't been stripped of everything that had made her the once sweet and caring person she had been, but so much of her was walled up so tightly, Cye doubted she even realized she had feelings anymore. The only time anything squeezed out it was when Kento was around, and then afterwards she walled up even tighter.

He knew better than to ever mention that to Kento. This entire thing had hurt him far greater than anyone else knew, and he was trying so hard to move past it all. Cye knew better than to give him any kind of hope when it came to Mia. Plus Nikki had shown Cye some very horrible things when she had let him delve her, and if Mia had experienced anything like that, then he doubted that there was any part of her that wasn't deeply affected. If Mia had to keep her walls up to protect herself from what had happened then maybe those walls should stay up. Even Mia could only stay strong for so long, she didn't need anyone trying to break down her defenses to get close to her. Cye had always thought that you needed to be honest with yourself and your demons, so you could learn to heal. But no one seemed to be healing these days, they only seemed to be getting worse. Cye was too busy trying to lay his own demons to rest right now, and to move on. He didn't have the energy to try and help any of the others.

Cye's eyes popped open and all he saw was darkness. His chest had started to hurt even more, his arms and legs were starting to go numb, and he knew he needed to get back up to the surface. There was a small problem. He didn't know which direction that was. Cye twisted and turned, searching the darkness for that one small speck of light, but he had drifted too deep and it was gone. Apprehension momentarily wavered his calm, making his chest hurt even more. Cye wasn't positive but he must have been down here for a few hours at least. It was definitely time to get back to the surface. He reached out to his environment, searching for direction, but the ocean was no help. Water has no concept of up or down, and it has no top or bottom. Frustrated and slightly panicky, Cye did something he had never done before. There were people up on the beach, and if he found them, he would know which direction was the right one. Not knowing exactly how it was done, Cye reached out with his mind.

He found fish. Not much goes through a fish's brain, and the tiny sparks of thought were so shallow that Cye didn't even bother trying to understand. Cye pushed his mind out farther. At first there was nothing but more fish, then his mind hit that of something much larger than a fish. Its brain was much more complex than the fish, although it was not necessarily intelligent. But it did give off the feeling of being very hungry. Cye jerked his mind back from it, pushing past in all directions at once. It was hard and much more taxing on his strength than reaching out in one direction. He was growing tired and that worried him, being this deep. Cye didn't realize how hard he was reaching out, how desperately he was trying to find his way, until one section broke the surface of the water, grabbing at all the people nearby. A thousand different emotions and thoughts hit Cye at once, and he reeled back from it in pain, clutching his head. Then one familiar mind touched his.

_Cye? Is that you?_

Sage's sudden consciousness so near him made Cye jerk back in response. The blonde was the last person he expected to come in contact with. However, Sage's presence was much stronger than anything else and was easy to latch onto. So latch on Cye did and he began to move towards it.

_Are you alright? Where are you?_

Cye tried to send the impression that he was coming, but eased away from it, pulling his mind back completely. His head hurt as he swum, and now that he knew where he was going, Cye realized just how deep he had gone down. No wonder there was something large and hungry nearby, it had probably been a shark.

It took him almost a half hour before his head finally broke the surface. Cye looked around, realizing that he had drifted down shore of where he had started from. The beach had mostly emptied out, except for a blonde man that sat waiting on a medium sized rock near the water. He stood up when he saw Cye emerge, but stayed where he was as Cye wearily rose out of the water. Sage looked at him seriously, his violet eyes narrowed with what Cye had come to recognize as worry. Cye was amazed he didn't feel it coming off of his friend. But it was hard to concentrate on anything now, his senses having been replaced by a grinding headache.

"You okay?" Sage asked quietly, eyes flickering over Cye as if to make sure he wasn't missing any parts. Cye nodded, rubbing his arms to try to get the numbness out of them. Cye was too tired to be embarrassed right now, and freely admitted what had happened.

"Yeah. I stayed down too long and got disoriented. I was deep, couldn't find my way up."

Cye looked down the coast as a breeze hit him, chilling his bare wet torso. He was wearing swim trunks but had left the rest of his clothes back where he had started at.

"I think I left my things over this way."

Cye started off and without invitation, Sage fell into step next to him. The blonde's lips were pursed, and he looked like he wanted to say something. Cye guessed that it was something to the effect of how dangerous it was to let himself go that far, and he didn't want to hear it, but Sage kept his mouth shut, choosing to not bring it up. They found his clothes about a mile down the beach, and Cye thankfully dried off, pulling on a large black hoodie and quickly changing into a pair of jeans. Cye sat down on the grass, leaning against a tree quietly. The numbness had left his arms and legs, but he was definitely tired and his head still hurt a lot. Sage had sat down crossed legged a few feet away and was looking out at the ocean.

"You really startled me, shouting like that," Sage suddenly murmured.

Cye looked at him.

"What do you mean, shouting?" he asked.

Sage smiled slightly. "You were projecting yourself. I'm so used to everyone else being normal, I don't usually block anything out. I just happened to be driving by and you slammed into me so suddenly I almost ran off the road."

Cye flushed slightly and shrugged uncomfortably.

"Sorry. I didn't realize that I was…shouting. I've never done anything like that before. I was just trying to find my way up."

Sage glanced at him speculatively.

"Does your head hurt?" he asked curiously. Cye grimaced and nodded.

"Feels like I'm getting a migraine."

"That's a sign that you overextended yourself,' Sage told him. "Actually I was startled with how strong you are, I hadn't realized." Sage sat quietly for a moment before adding softly, "You need to be careful, Cye. If you overextend yourself to the point of exhaustion, especially down there where we would have a hard time finding you, it could be bad."

"I'll keep that in mind," Cye replied, a bit shortly. He wasn't exactly pleased at how his attempt at a relaxing afternoon had gone and he wasn't in the mood for quiet calm lectures, especially when he knew that Sage was right. Sage just nodded, eyes drifting back to the ocean. A faint feeling of concern brushed back over him, and Cye felt a little guilty. Sage was just being a friend, he didn't deserve to get the brunt of Cye's attitude.

"It's weird for me," Cye admitted, trying to smooth over the awkwardness. "I'm not very good at turning that stuff on and off."

Sage gave him a tight smile.

"You'll get used to it."

Cye looked down at his hands. He had forgotten that was how Sage was. When it came to emotions, the blonde was immovable. He had always been. Both of them had received these new powers around the same time. But while Cye kept working to build a resistance to it, Sage hadn't tried to many any barriers at all. Cye could feel it. Sage's walls stayed down and he let all the emotions run freely around him and remained, as far as Cye could tell, unaffected by them.

That was the difference between the two. Cye had always been about talking openly about how he felt and being mindful of his and others' emotions. Sage was not. Sage wasn't a talker about anything at all; especially how he felt. Cye knew he would be wrong to assume Sage didn't feel as much as other people did, but Sage had a completely different way of dealing with emotions. It was almost like he could make himself immune to his empathy if he wanted to be.

Though he didn't want to admit it, Cye was jealous about that. Being next to Sage and feeling that difference between them made Cye feel like the weaker one. Why couldn't he be more like Sage? Why couldn't he just let this bombardment of the senses just roll off him and continue on? Why did he have to let so many little things bother him all the time?

The answer came simply. He couldn't be like Sage because he wasn't Sage. He was Cye. And Cye handled his problems by talking about them. Just like he had and how he always would. But the one thing he was dying to talk about still seemed like an unreachable subject right now. He had a feeling Sage wasn't ready to discuss Cassie with him yet. And there was still another subject that needed addressing.

To Cye's surprise, Sage brought it up first.

"Do you think," Sage spoke softly. "That if Robyn had been with us then, she would have told us what was going on?"

Cye looked at him for a moment, trying to soak in the question and all the possibilities. He knew exactly what Sage was referring to. If Robyn had known that same secret that Mia had kept from them, would she have kept it too? Or would she have had enough faith in them to take the truth and tell them?

"I don't know," Cye finally spoke. "I don't want to think about it. If she had been there, too. If something had happened to her–" Cye froze there, ice creeping up his spine. What if it had been Robyn instead of Cassie? Would it have hurt less then?

Cye was horrified with himself for even thinking that. The thought of having a choice between the two in who he would have preferred to die made him sick to his stomach. Quickly, he pushed the offending thought away, a bit disgusted with his own thoughts.

"Why do you ask?" Cye then said, trying focus on something else.

Sage was quiet for a moment. "I just wonder if we should do the same by keeping this from her."

Cye shook his head and stood up, grimacing again at the pain the movement caused.

"It's something we all need to decide," Cye replied, thrusting one hand in his hoodie's pocket and picking up the rest of his stuff. "The sooner the better, or she might end up finding out about it anyway."

"You don't want to tell her, do you?" Sage surmised from his comment.

Cye turned and leveled his gaze at Sage. "Tell her what? We don't even know how to say it out loud to each other. How could we possibly say it to her?"

There was accusation in his words, but Sage made no move to deny it.

Cye turned and started walking back towards his car, not waiting to see if Sage would follow.

* * *

Ryo was sitting on the front steps of Robyn's apartment building when Rowen finally pulled up. The dark haired man stood up and smiled when he recognized the rusted car.

"Hey, you guys went somewhere without me? Thanks a lot," he teased.

Robyn climbed out and closed the door, her face set in a frown. Rowen stayed inside, his hands on the wheel. He made no move to exit the vehicle. Ryo instantly picked up on the vibe between the two and stiffened.

"Is everything okay?" he asked.

Robyn stayed silent, her head down slightly. Rowen remained staring ahead, his hands never leaving the steering wheel.

"I'm sorry, I have to go," Rowen said out the window. His voice was flat and left no room for argument. Neither did the fact that he was already backing out and driving away.

Ryo watched the car disappear in confusion and then turned to Robyn who still hadn't looked up at him.

"What happened?" he wondered.

Robyn shrugged. "I dunno. I guess... we had a fight."

Ryo's eyes widened and he looked in the direction Rowen's car had gone. Before she had left, Robyn and Rowen had gotten into all sorts of arguments, but it was always good natured teasing. They had never been in a FIGHT fight before. Ryo instantly blamed Rowen. His shortening temper was getting on everyone's nerves, but Ryo never thought he would blow up on Robyn. Especially on only the second day they had seen her.

"It was my fault," Robyn insisted when she saw the look on Ryo's face. "I had been having a bad day anyway so I was irritable. Don't blame him. I need to mind my own business."

Knowing Rowen, he didn't look quite convinced in what Robyn had said. But he let it slide for now.

"So do you want to hang out or go do something?" Ryo wondered.

Robyn sighed. "I'm sorry Ryo, but I'm really tired."

"I have a tv at my place," Ryo offered. "We could watch a movie. I've got popcorn."

Robyn tried to stop the smile that was tugging at the side of her mouth, but it was no use. "It's very tempting," she admitted. "I could go for that."

"Okay, only," Ryo then frowned. "We'd have to walk. Or we could probably find a bus stop."

"I don't mind. We can walk," Robyn relented. "Show me the way."

Ryo gave her a charming smile as he jerked his head in the direction they were going to go. The two feel in step side by side as they journeyed down the sidewalk.

"So how was job hunting?" Ryo ventured.

Robyn sighed, heavier this time. "I have to do it again."

"I see," Ryo replied.

Robyn fell into a sullen silence. Ryo couldn't have that.

"Hey," he smiled, getting her attention. "It will be better tomorrow. Don't give up yet."

"Thanks," Robyn replied softly.

It wasn't too far to Ryo's apartment. Robyn was amazed how close they were. It was kind of a nice coincidence. The place was nicer than hers. And bigger, with furniture. As promised, Ryo started getting popcorn for the microwave while he let Robyn glance over his modest movie collection. He offered they go rent one, but Robyn said she wasn't in the mood to go anywhere else. She settled for a movie she had seen before, but not for several years. It had a lot of explosions and no particularly deep plot. Something she could just watch without thinking.

Ryo's couch was comfortable and Robyn allowed herself just to sink into it. Though she was staring right at the tv, she wasn't really watching it. Her thoughts kept going back to that argument. The anger and hurt in Rowen's face, his voice; she had never seen him like that.

"_I don't have to tell you every thing that's happened while you were away Robyn! YOU left US, remember? Hell, I'm **glad **you weren't there!"_

Robyn thought about the conversation over and over again, not paying attention to the movie. Maybe she had been naive thinking that she could be gone for six years and just come back and act like everything was the same as it had been. That was her mistake, not theirs. She did know the kind of lives they had as Ronin Warriors, but that didn't mean she was entitled to know their business, whether or not it involved their armors.

They WERE very strong and capable men after all. It wasn't like they needed her for anything. Even just to talk, they had each other. They would understand each other better than she would. Especially now with her having been gone so long. She wasn't necessary. That was how strong people were. They could handle their problems, their lives, on their own. Robyn would do better to be more like them.

Ryo looked over from the movie when he felt something press against his arm. Robyn's head and shoulder were leaning against him, her eyes closed. She wasn't kidding when she said she was tired. Ryo allowed himself a small smile as he continued to watch the movie. It was nice hanging out like this. He hadn't realized how draining it was to be with the others until now. Not that he didn't like his friends, but it was different. With Robyn, he wasn't constantly worrying she would blow up at him or someone else. There were no uncomfortable silences or awkward moments when certain topics came up and all of them pretended that they weren't bothered by it.

With Robyn, Ryo never had to worry about how that horrible incident had affected her. He was so glad she had never experienced it. He never had to wonder if she was getting over it okay, if she was moving on or if there were parts of it still eating her inside and haunting her dreams. It felt good to have a friend who he could just be with, even if she was sleeping right now.

A deep hum pulled Ryo out from his thoughts and he reached for his vibrating cell phone as carefully as he could. Ryo wasn't the type to have electronic gadgets, but he needed one for his job since he was outside all day. He quickly turned down the tv and turned his voice away from the sleeping woman as he answered.

"Hello?"

"Hey Ryo, it's Cye. I've been talking to the guys and we're going to try to get together at Rowen's house in about a half hour. There are certain things I think we all agree need to be discussed. Can you come?"

Ryo glanced over at Robyn. She hadn't stirred yet.

"Um, I kind of have Robyn over at my place right now. I don't know if I could."

"I'm not sure if we could do it any other time. Everyone is free right now. Who knows when it will happen again? If you can't show up, we'll probably still have a talk without you. Is that okay?"

Ryo frowned slightly as he glanced at Robyn again and weighed his options. He was pretty sure he had a good idea of what they planned to discuss. He really felt like he needed to be there. Maybe he could sneak away. "I'll do what I can, but go ahead and start without me."

"Okay. I'll let the others know. Bye, Ryo."

Ryo closed his phone and set about the slow task of extricating himself from Robyn's sleeping form without rousing her. Once having completed that, Ryo placed a light blanket over her and then squatted to look at her sleeping face. Robyn really had passed out hard on him. She was probably still getting used to the time difference. Ryo left her a quick note on the coffee table in case she did wake up before he returned and then stepped out the door, locking it behind him.

* * *

By the time Ryo reached Rowen's, the guys had managed to get into three minor blowouts and had resorted to sitting with crossed arms and scowls on their faces. Rowen particularly looked pissed, and he had parked himself out on his couch, feet stretched out so that even if anyone else had wanted to sit down, they couldn't. Cye and Sage had both claimed the two small chairs that made up Rowen's dining set. Kento, still in his work clothes and smelling of sweat and orange chicken, had plopped down on the kitchen counter, fully in view of the others because of the small size of the apartment. Hardrock's face was a thundercloud. Sage had on his best stubborn expression, and Cye looked like he was at his patience's end.

Cye massaged his temples with his fingers as Ryo entered the room, having heard a muffled yell of "Come in!". Ryo looked around, picking up immediately on the tension in the room.

"So…" Ryo started cautiously.

No one said anything and only Cye seemed interested in making eye contact with him. Finally Torrent rolled his eyes and looked at Ryo, half embarrassed, half disgusted.

"It seems," Cye drawled, "That we are completely incapable of making a decision without you, Ryo."

"Why is that?" Ryo asked, even though he knew better.

"Because Rowen is a fucking idiot," Kento snapped from the kitchen, voice heated.

Rowen glared at Kento angrily.

"Because it's my fault that Robyn decided to tear my clothes off," Rowen shot back sarcastically.

"You couldn't have just made something up, could you?" Kento growled. "No, you had to flip out and be an asshole to her, and now she knows something's going on."

"She said you guys got into a fight," Ryo spoke up in concern, directing the question at Rowen. Strata rolled his eyes and sighed dramatically.

"She tricked me and yanked down my shirt." To emphasize the point Rowen hooked a finger on the neck of his sweater and pulled the material down, revealing the angry dark purple skin that used to be a smooth section of neck. Even now after it had healed, it still looked exactly like what it was, a hunk of flesh that had been bitten off. It made Ryo shiver and grow angry at the same time, and made him remember how helpless he had been in the fight where Rowen had received the wound.

"It wasn't as if I was throwing it around," Rowen added. "It's not my fault that Robyn had to be nosy."

"Hey back off of her," Cye instantly replied, quick to come to her defense. "Robyn didn't know. And you certainly could have handled the situation better than that. You could have come up with something to tell her."

"Of thank you, warrior of _trust_," Rowen drawled. "I'll remember that lying to my friends is the way to go from now on."

Cye glared furiously at Rowen, but Sage cut in, trying to soothe them both.

"Rowen, you know Cye's right. It wasn't your fault she saw your wound, but you should have made up some sort of explanation. Now she'll just wonder all the more, especially since you yelled at her. You wouldn't really be lying to her, just protecting her from things she doesn't need to know anything about."

Rowen however, wasn't in the mood to be placated.

"Sure Sage," Rowen replied. "Because lying to cover up what someone didn't want others to know worked out really well for everyone in this room. It worked out fabulously. In fact, why don't we give Mia a call, I'm sure she could think up something marvelous to tell Robyn, something that only the best kind of liar could come up with---"

That was about as far as he got. Kento had jumped down off the counter and had reached the couch, grabbing Rowen by the collar and yanking him up to his feet.

"You want to say that shit standing up?" Kento snarled, so angry he was shaking. Rowen faced down the furious Hardrock, nose to nose.

"I haven't said anything everyone in this room didn't already know," Rowen responded to the threat levelly.

"Rowen!" Sage barked. "Quit it! This isn't about any of that, it's about Robyn."

"See how well it's been going?" Cye remarked Ryo, wincing at the shouting and rubbing his temple again.

"This has everything to do with Robyn," Rowen replied, still face to face with Kento and not backing down. "Do you actually think she isn't going to figure any of this out? Don't you think that each of us is going to let something slip without even realizing it, a little here a little there, and she won't put it all together? At least if we are honest with her, then she might have a fighting chance---."

"A fighting chance against what?" Kento asked in a dangerously quiet voice. "There's nothing left to fight against, Rowen. It's over. We all saw it, he's gone."

Rowen's dark blue eyes glittered as he smiled grimly at his comrade. "Why? Because we say it is? Because we hope it is? Give me one ounce of proof that everything is actually over---."

"Mia gave us proof," Ryo spoke up softly, having not said anything up to this point. "White Blaze gave us proof. And that's all the proof we get. We can't sit around scared to death that the something is going to leap out at us when we least expect it, and we can't start fighting with each other because we're worried something like that will happen again. We're not here to point fingers and throw around blame, so that needs to stop." Ryo's face became dangerous as he stepped in between Rowen and Kento. The blue haired man was taller, but the look in Ryo's eyes made Rowen shrink back slightly.

"Rowen, you're my friend. But Mia was my best friend and if I ever hear you say anything like that again about her, I will personally beat the hell out of you. Sit down!" The last part came out as a snarl.

Rowen sat. Kento snorted derisively, and found himself nose to nose with Ryo.

"I get it," Ryo said softly, almost gently. "I really do. But I don't care how angry he makes you, or how angry any of you make each other, we are a team. We fight together, not against each other, and if we can't do that, then we've already lost whatever advantage we had. Sit." Ryo pointed at the kitchen and Kento grudgingly did as he was told. Ryo crossed his arms, now resembling the rest of them, and he looked about the room.

"Let me ask you guys something. Is there a single one of you that is mentally ready to fight right now, if something happened unexpectedly? Is anyone actually even watching what's going on around you?"

They all shifted uncomfortably, the answer obvious on their faces.

"I know this has been hard…" Ryo fought down saying that it had been absolutely horrible, and that he had never imagined how hard it would be to lose his tiger, but he stuffed the words down, hardening his voice. "I know it's been hard, but we all need to still keep sharp, to not do anything stupid, and to keep our eyes open. As far as we know, the Damian threat is over, but that doesn't mean something else isn't around the corner waiting. We need to be strong, we need to stick together, and we need to decide what to tell Robyn."

Ryo looked at the couch, where Rowen had stretched out again. Ryo stared pointedly at his feet and Rowen begrudgingly moved his legs so that Ryo could sit down. Ryo waited for someone else to start talking but no one came forward. Finally he sighed and broached the subject.

"Okay. So who thinks that we should tell Robyn what happened?"

No one raised their hands. Ryo rolled his eyes at Rowen.

"Okay…Rowen? Weren't you pushing to tell Robyn?" Ryo asked with forced patience. Rowen shook his head.

"I don't want to tell her anything. The less she knows the better. But that doesn't mean that I don't think she will somehow find out by herself, and I think it's better if we just tell her."

"So you vote to tell her."

"No. I vote she's going to find out anyways."

Ryo sighed, looking at Sage for help.

"He votes no," Sage said. "Just as I do. I don't want Robyn to have to deal with any of this stuff. Hell, I don't want to have to deal with--" Sage stopped himself there, swallowing the rest of his thoughts. That was probably the most Sage ever had to say about the situation.

"I vote we don't tell her," Cye spoke up. "Robyn's only going to be around for a few months. She doesn't need to know anything. If she asks, then don't give her any big answers. I know Robyn. She doesn't want to pry into anyone else's business, so as long as we downplay any issues that might come up, she won't ask."

The others nodded, except for Rowen, who remained in a stony silence.

"Well, it's not like she never kept anything from us," Kento put in. "All that shit back in high school; Cye had to get attacked before we realized anything was going on."

"She's a lot better at keeping secrets than we are," Cye put in, wondering if that was a good or bad thing.

"We'll just have to keep watch on her," Ryo announced, eyes on Rowen. "If anything does happen, we tell Robyn so she can better protect herself. That way no one is left in the dark when they shouldn't be." It was obviously made for Rowen's benefit and seemed to make him relax slightly.

There was a general grunt of agreement, even from Rowen. They all sat for few moments, but realizing that this wasn't one of those fun relaxing evenings, and realizing that Rowen very clearly wanted to be left alone, the group slowly headed out. Ryo hung around, waiting until the others had left. As the door closed behind Sage, he rounded on the blue haired man that had finally stood up.

"Rowen, what the hell were you thinking, picking a fight with Kento like that?" Ryo demanded. Rowen shrugged, face defensive.

"I was mad," Rowen replied. He leaned against the arm of his couch, expression stubborn.

"You're always mad, Rowen."

Rowen didn't reply. There was nothing much to say, because the statement was correct.

Ryo continued, not done. "I know exactly why you've been acting the way you have, Rowen. We all do, and no one says anything about it because you need a chance to be angry. But you're taking things too far. You act like you're the only one who this happened to and you know that's not true. So at least have a little compassion, you aren't the only one who got hurt."

Rowen still said nothing, but he did manage to look a little embarrassed from where he rested.

"Try to control yourself, Rowen," Ryo said. "And apologize to Robyn. You hurt her feelings."

"Yeah…Okay, Ryo." Rowen muttered. Ryo stood there for a moment, then nodded and quietly left, leaving Rowen alone with his anger.

Outside in the hall, Ryo saw Sage leaning against the wall, waiting for him to be through talking with Rowen. Had he been that obvious that he wanted to chew Rowen out in private? Sage gave him a weak smile, and headed back into Rowen's apartment without knocking. That at least made Ryo feel better, since he had already started to feel guilty about yelling at them all tonight. Ryo hated pulling rank, but he was worried to death about his guys, and he was afraid that if they couldn't get it all together, then things would only get worse. Sage was Rowen's best friend, and if anyone could rationalize with him, Sage could. Rowen couldn't maintain this manic kick for much longer, not if Sage was there to let his air out regularly.

Ryo headed for his apartment, hoping on a subway so the trip went faster. He wanted to go home, where it was calm and no one was angry. If Robyn was still there, maybe he could cook her something to eat. He had been cooking more these days and he found that he enjoyed it a lot. It was with relief that Ryo went up to his apartment and let himself in. The place was as he left it, the same lights on, and the corner of the blanket he'd laid on Robyn's sleeping form was sticking out beyond the arm of the couch. A small smile came to Ryo's face as he moved to the couch and looked down. Robyn was gone.

Ryo's ears perked up and he listened to the stillness of the room. He couldn't sense anyone else in his apartment.

"Robyn?" he called out loud, wandering a bit down the hall, checking the bathroom anyway. Nothing.

For a brief moment, panic filled him. All the things he and his friends had just talked about came back to him. About being prepared for an attack, about telling Robyn so she could better defend herself. Horrible images mixed from the past and his own imagination came to Ryo's head, making his heart beat quicker. It also made him feel that much more foolish when he noticed the piece of paper still left on the coffee table. It was the note he had left her, but she had turned it over and written on the back.

"Sorry I fell asleep on you. I didn't know you had some place you had to go tonight. I went home. Don't worry, I found the landlord and had him lock up for you."

That only did a little to soothe Ryo's nerves. He quickly whipped out his cell phone and dialed Robyn's number. It rang more times than Ryo would have liked and he was almost out the door to run over there when someone picked up.

"Hello?"

"Hey Robyn, it's Ryo."

"Oh hey, I just barely got in the door. Hope you weren't calling long."

Ryo ignored her pleasant tone. "Robyn, why didn't you wait? I could have walked you home."

"Well because you didn't say what time you would be back, silly," Robyn replied. "I knew the way home. I didn't need to wait for you."

"But you should have," Ryo insisted. "You shouldn't be out at night alone. It's dangerous. Promise me you won't do that again, okay?"

There was silence on the other end.

"Are you serious?" Robyn finally demanded. "I'm not a child you know. I'm allowed to go outside when I want. I don't need your permission. And I've gotten along fine without a big, manly male escort before, thanks."

"Being older doesn't mean nothing will ever happen to you," Ryo shot back. "I want you to be careful."

"Ryo, I'm sorry. I love you, but you're not my parents and you're not Cye. I don't have to do what you say."

"I know, but--"

"Good night, Ryo."

CLICK.

Robyn hung up and Ryo pulled his phone away so he could stare at the buzzing receiver.

"I'm not Cye?" he asked his phone. What was that supposed to mean? Ryo closed his phone with a frown and dropped himself on his couch to slouch and brood. He could get four powerful warriors wanting to kill each other to stop bickering, but he couldn't get one redhead to do what he asked.


	3. Chapter 3

**The Blinding Mask**

Chapter Three

It was later in the morning by the time Robyn was ready to step out the door. She wasn't as enthusiastic as she was yesterday. In all reality, she was very much not looking forward to another day of job hunting. Yesterday had discouraged her quite a bit. But the fact remained, she still needed a job or she was going to be in trouble.

So, with a new paper in hand and new jobs circled, Robyn took a deep breath and reached for her door.

The phone rang.

Sighing, she went over to answer it. But then her hand paused mere inches over the receiver. She had a feeling she knew who the caller was and she was really in no mood to talk to him. Especially when her day depended on her staying positive. The phone continued to ring, but Robyn removed her hand. She gave the noisy thing one last look before heading out the door and locking it behind her.

* * *

Rowen glared darkly at the receiver still ringing in his hand. Robyn wasn't picking up her phone and he had a feeling she was doing it on purpose. He let out a short breath as he hung it up. She wasn't making this easy for him. But then again, Robyn was hardly one to ever go the easy route. Rowen knew he was going to have to be more assertive if he wanted to get this matter taken care of.

* * *

"Yes. Yes, sir. No problem, I'll get on that right away," Mia said as she stepped off the sidewalk, not even bothering to glance to make sure no cars were running the light. There were so many people milling around right now, only an idiot would manage to miss seeing them. She juggled her purse on her arm and her coffee in her hand, holding her phone between her ear and her shoulder while trying to write down what her boss was saying on a small notepad.

"No, I'm not sure what they told Mr. Yamaro…sir? Sir, can you still hear me?" Mia winced at the static and wished that she had a free hand to hold the phone away from her ear. "Sir, can you—there you are. Yes. Yes. _Yes_." By the third yes, she could barely keep the exasperation out of her voice, and winced again as more static blocked out his voice. He yelled something and then the call ended with a loud click indicating he had just hung up on her. Mia continued talking in a sarcastic voice as she flipped her cell phone shut, rolling her eyes.

"How was my day? Why thank you sir, it was very nice. So kind of you to ask! Would I like to take this weekend off? Of course I would! That way I can take the time to go buy a new phone, one that actually works instead of this piece of crap we were given. What's that sir? An expense account? How incredibly generous of you!"

The man next to her gave her a sympathetic smile as he continued to talk on his phone, gesturing for her to hand him her coffee. Gratefully Mia did, thankful that she now had an extra hand to organize herself and still keep up with the long strides of her companion. Tucking her notepad and phone in her purse, Mia turned back to retrieve her coffee. Unfortunately, Masahiro had already taken a sip and decided it had become too cold and was in the middle of tossing the cup in a trash bin. Shrugging, Mia continued to walk next to him, listening to him speak rapidly into his phone.

Masahiro was a lawyer, and he oozed lawyer-ness from his very pores, from the top of his immaculately groomed head to the bottom of his perfectly polished dress shoes. Moderately attractive, he had sparkling eyes and a bright smile, with teeth as straight as one could get them. He was everything his firm wanted him to be: clever, quick on his feet, mildly scrupulous, and able to talk his way into and out of anything. He was also the reason Mia was once again trapped in the city of Toyama.

Masahiro represented a group that had recently purchased a large amount of historically important real estate, and special interest groups were frothing at the mouth, rabidly trying to stop the impending construction. Mia had "officially" been brought in as a consultant to both sides of the issue to help mediate, but she wasn't stupid. Masahiro's clients paid her employer's bills and her boss was already putting pressure on her to make sure that as much of the original project be salvaged as possible. She was in a difficult position, personally wanting to protect the land and its history as much as she could, but risking losing her job if she didn't follow her orders. That's where Masahiro came in. She had to work with him. If they were on good terms, she might be able to squeeze through this without losing her self respect or her job.

They had become friends, and he had asked her on this luncheon date. Mia hadn't refused. This was what she was supposed to be doing, wasn't it? At her age it was unheard of to not be married already. This way she at least blended in more with her peers and made her life easier. Normal, everything was normal. Normal job, normal social interaction, and normal dating life equaled a normal girl. She reminded herself of this at least ten times a day, and told herself that she believed it too.

There was a cute little upscale café on the corner that Masahiro had insisted that she try. He ushered her towards the entrance, talking even more rapidly on his phone. He held the door for her and Mia stepped inside, looking around curiously. It was definitely nice, and a hostess hurried up to her with a bright smile.

"Hello! Two of you today? Would you like inside or outside?" she asked. Mia looked to Masahiro, who thankfully flipped closed his phone.

"Outside please," he told the hostess, putting his hand on the small of Mia's back as they were lead to the table.

Mia forced herself to not stiffen at the touch. She didn't particularly enjoy it. She didn't need to be led around like a dog. It was okay when she wanted that kind of gesture, like when she was nervous and a strong hand touched her back reassuringly, taking control of the situation…Mia jerked her thoughts away from that and sat down, thanking the girl when she was handed a menu.

"They have the best tomato and eggplant bisque here," Masahiro told her with a charming smile, dropping his menu to the table. Mia raised an eyebrow at him, thinking that sounded absolutely disgusting. Masahiro laughed at her expression, reaching across the table and squeezing her hand.

"You know, you should really go to Paris sometime, Mia. There's hundreds of these little cafes, each more quaint than the last one, and each one is amazing."

Masahiro gave her a sexy wink, and Mia bet that line had worked on hoards of women before her. Inwardly sighing, she gave him her best smile, trying to make it genuine. She did care what he had to say, she reminded herself. She really did. And he was cute. Yes. He was cute, too. Quite a catch. The other women had seemed jealous that they were on a "date". That was normal too, dating and jealousy and…all those things that other people thought were important, even though they really weren't. Once more Mia snapped herself to attention, forcing herself to focus on her companion.

"Paris? Really? I've been to Europe several times, but never had the luxury of

spending much time there," Mia told him, causing Masahiro to launch into an explanation of the glories that were Paris.

Mia eyeballed the menu as he spoke, noticing that they had a meatball sandwich that sounded wonderful. The waitress stepped up and asked them if they were ready to order. Mia opened her mouth to reply when Masahiro smoothly cut in.

"Yes. We will both have the tomato and eggplant bisque. I will have half a turkey sandwich and the lady will have a Caesar salad. And waters, both." The waitress smiled brightly as she scribbled down their order, taking the menu out of a gapping mouthed Mia's hands. Masahiro gave her wrist another squeeze.

"Trust me, it's wonderful. And I know you like Caesar salads, I do pay attention, you know." Masahiro winked at her again and gave her a smooth grin, misinterpreting Mia's stunned expression for one of awe. All Mia could think was, _'But I wanted meatballs…!'_ Her temper flared and she almost said something, but then Masahiro's phone rang.

"One minute babe," he told her. "I've got to take this."

And so he did.

Mia sat quietly, half amused and half disgusted that her date continued to discuss business on the phone all the way up until their food arrived. Eating didn't stop him and Mia sank into her chair unnoticed and unacknowledged, toying with her soup and staring out at the passing people. An elderly couple walked by and gave her a smile; an attractive and well dressed young woman lunching with an attractive and well dressed young man. Normal. This was normal. This was what she was supposed to do; who she was supposed to be.

_Kento would never have made me eat this crap or ignored me the entire time._

The thought jumped out half way through a spoonful, shaking her collected and calm facade. So Mia did the only thing she could do. She shut her brain out and ate the damn soup, a smile on her face the entire time.

* * *

It was well past lunch time and Robyn was starving. It had been another long, hard day of job searching. Luckily she was near a certain restaurant she knew of. Her stomach growled when she neared the place and the smells reached her nose. However, the first thing she asked for when she walked into the room was not a table.

"Is Kento working today?" she asked the hostess at the front.

The younger girl looked at her the same way most of them did when Robyn approached them. They saw her red hair and immediately appeared uncomfortable, thinking she was American and they would have to try to speak English to her. Then they would always relax when she would address them in fluent Japanese. So did this girl also. She smiled when Robyn asked and said Kento was in the back. Robyn thanked her and moved through the restaurant, past the kitchen to the back rooms. She nosed around a bit and had to ask a few more staff members, but she finally found Kento in a small office in the far corner of the building. She had never been in this room before. If not for then, she probably would not have known it existed.

"Hi!" she called as she poked her head in.

Kento was sitting at a computer, a serious look of concentration on his face and several books scattered all around him. His mother was standing behind him and her face brightened when she saw Robyn.

"Oh Honey, there you are!" she exclaimed as she rushed Robyn and pulled her into a hug. "Kento told me you were visiting. I was so hoping you would stop by!"

Kento's mother was by no means a small, frail woman and it was all Robyn could do just to stand in the crushing embrace.

"Thanks," she gasped. "I was just passing through. Thought I would say hello."

"Hey Rob," Kento greeted. He waved a hand at her in a distracted fashion while continuing to punch at the key board with the other hand.

"Sorry if I came at a busy time. I could come back later," Robyn offered.

"Oh, nonsense," Mrs. Faun insisted. "Now is a fine time. We've just been trying to make some sense out of Kento's sister's book keeping. She's so good at math, we've been letting her take care of finances for us. Unfortunately, she wasn't good at keeping things organized. And now that she's away at college, we're having trouble making heads and tails of all her work."

"I told you, Ma," Kento said without looking away from the screen. "Rinfi doesn't take things seriously. I told you she was going to do a half assed job. She really screwed it up by keeping half in books and half on the computer, see? It's just going to make things harder. It would probably help to get everything on the computer but then, I'm not sure how I'm going to keep it organized."

"I have a suggestion," Robyn offered. "Do you have internet on that computer?"

Kento actually looked up at her that time. "Sure, but I don't see how playing Reversi is going to help anything."

Robyn glared at him despite the fact that he still remembered her favorite computer game.

"Oh Kento, stop," his mother teased back. "You're not much more help than your sister with this. Let her try."

Kento relented his seat to her and Robyn quickly typed in a URL and set about acquiring some downloads. She hummed as she did so, looking quite comfortable behind the computer. Kento was standing behind her, arms folded and watching what she was doing.

"There," Robyn announced when she was all finished downloading and installing the software. "They're just little free programs, but I'm sure they'll help you out." She clicked the program open. "This one has a couple different applets depending on what types of records you need to keep." She grabbed the nearest book on the desk. "Like these ingredient shipments, you would probably want to use this one. It works like this."

Kento and his mother watched quietly as Robyn pulled up the correct sheet and began imputing the information. Kento was quite impressed with her speed. She didn't even have to look back at the screen while she was typing. It was a bit better than his slow two-fingered typing style, he had to admit.

"See, you put the date here, you put the company here, the type of shipment in this box, then the dollar amount over here. There's also a space if you want to keep a budget amount next to it to see how much you're spending. And when you have a list of items, you can push this button here and it will give you a total at the bottom."

"Oh, that is fantastic!" Mrs. Faun cheered. "This will help us very much!"

Kento's eyes were glued to the screen as he pulled up a chair next to her. Robyn was a bit surprised to see so much interest from him. Kento wasn't the biggest fan of computers, but then again, she knew he was interested in business.

"Can you show me how to use this?" he asked.

"Sure," Robyn agreed. "I'm pretty much done for today. If you don't mind me getting something to eat, I could spend some time showing you all the different features afterwards."

Kento glanced at the newspaper she still had under her arm. He could see all the red marks on it. He then glanced around at all the paper work littering the small office. It had piled for so long, it would take a least a few months to fully organize and get processed into the computer.

"Yeah," he smiled. "You go get something to eat. I need to have a talk with my mom."

* * *

It was later in the evening when the current hostess came back and told Kento he had someone waiting for him in a table out front.

"You're really popular today with everyone," she joked with him, giving him a thumbs up.

Kento gave her a good natured glare. She was young; still in high school. She also really enjoyed teasing him and giving him a hard time for being single. She, of course, had a boyfriend. Sometimes Kento didn't like her much.

Walking over to said table, Kento was not surprised at all to see Ryo sitting there waiting for him. Kento plopped down in the chair across from him with a sigh, cutting off any good natured greeting Ryo had for him.

"Don't you have something to build?" Kento asked tiredly. "I swear, you're here like every day."

"I told you Kento, in construction there are off days between jobs. And the job ended Monday. I've got enough money to last me a while."

Kento sighed again. "We need to get you a hobby. You have too much free time."

Ryo looked mildly offended. "Well excuse me for wanting to visit my friends."

"You're not pretty enough for me to enjoy seeing your face every day," Kento grinned back in jest.

Ryo chuckled and then his face grew a bit more serious. "I was actually glad this happened. Since everyone else is so busy with work or school, at least I'll be able to keep an eye on Robyn while she's here."  
Kento raised a dubious brow at him. "For three months?"

Ryo ignored that. "My biggest worry right now is..." he paused, a mixture of concern and confusion on his face. "I really don't think she's going to listen to me. I got after her last night for walking home by herself and it was like she didn't hear a word I said." He looked at Kento seriously. "Why isn't she listening? Doesn't she know I'm just trying to watch out for her? She should do what I tell her so she'll stay safe!"

Kento tried to keep a straight face, but it was too much. He cracked up.

"It's not funny, Kento!" Ryo insisted. "I'm being serious!"

"I know Ryo, I know," Kento replied, trying to school himself. "But I think you're forgetting that Robyn isn't one of us. You can't pull rank on her when she's doing something you don't want. She's lived by herself for a long time, she's not used to having to report to any one. If you want her to see it your way, you're going to have to try approaching her differently."

Ryo slumped a bit, pushing his hands in to his pockets. What Kento said made sense. It was hard to get her to sympathize to his worries without telling her why he was so paranoid in the first place. But he could give it a shot to try to make her see his way.

"You're right," Ryo admitted. "Actually, I was hoping you could help me out a bit."

"How's that?" Kento asked, interested.

"You know that Robyn's been looking for a job, right? I was thinking maybe you could get her a job here. That way, you could keep an eye on her during the day without making her feel like any of us were checking up on her."

Kento pressed his lips as he thought it over.

"I dunno Ryo. Robyn's pretty independent. She might think of it as a hand out and not go for it."

"Could you at least offer?" Ryo pressed.

"I'll have to think about it," Kento insisted. "She's already at odds with Rowen. I don't want her to have a beef with me, too. YOU could suggest it to her if you like."

Ryo slumped further, rejecting the idea.

"I didn't think so," Kento smirked.

"Hey Kento," Robyn greeted as she came up to them. "I'm leaving so I'll see you tomorrow. Oh, hey Ryo. Guess what? Kento's mom gave me a job here."

Ryo gaped at them both. Then it turned to more of a glare and more towards Kento. Hardrock turned his head slightly, but could still feel Wildfire's anger vibes aimed towards him.

"What's going on?" Robyn wondered.

Kento chuckled. "Ryo here was trying to hustle me into giving you a job."

Robyn looked down at him. "Seriously Ryo, get a hobby or a dog or something."

"Sorry," he mumbled, looking embarrassed. "Do you... want me to walk you home then?"

"No need," Robyn waved him off. "Stay and hang with Kento. I'll see you guys later."

Ryo went to get up anyway, but Kento reached over and got an iron-lock grip on his jacket with a "Bye Robyn."

"Why did you do that?" Ryo demanded when she was out the door.

Kento looked at his friend knowingly. "Sorry Ryo, I won't do that to you again. But trust me, just let her go home by herself tonight, okay?"

When he said it that way, Ryo had no choice but to listen. For some reason, Kento believed it was already being taken care of and Ryo trusted him.

* * *

Rowen didn't know what he was doing there. He had tried calling Robyn several times that day, hoping to catch her at least once while she was home. He knew how she was and he had a feeling she was purposefully avoiding him. But he had to apologize to her soon. If not, he would loose his nerve and also, Robyn would start acting like the whole thing didn't happen. Though he still had so many of his own issues to deal with, Rowen refused to be the cause of another friend pretending something wasn't wrong. This disease of lying and pretending had gotten them all. He'd be damned if it got Robyn, too. She was the only one who had remained untouched. They needed her to stay that way.

Still, Rowen had no idea what he was doing there. He had called Sage to complain to him about Robyn not answering her phone. Sage, as usual, didn't have much in the way of anything helpful to suggest. He also, as usual, hung up in the middle of Rowen's ranting, saying he had to go. Obviously, he had called someone after that. Rowen wasn't sure who, but somewhere down the grape vine, Kento was the one that called him back and told him about what time Robyn would be returning home.

And again, Rowen didn't know what he was doing there. Sure, he planned on going to see Robyn so he could talk to her. But why did he have to instantly drive over there? He easily beat Robyn home and now was waiting out in his car, hands still on the steering wheel. He didn't like doing that. Waiting outside someone's house in his car didn't sit well with Rowen. He felt like a stalker. And it felt like other people noticed him there, wondering if he was a stalker. He didn't know what he was doing. Why didn't he wait just a little while longer before driving out there?

Rowen looked up in relief when he noticed a familiar red head come up the street. It was about time. Any longer and he might have just left.

Robyn walked closer and she recognized Rowen's sorry excuse for a vehicle instantly. Rowen raised a hand to wave at her. But Robyn turned away from him, bringing a palm up to block him from her vision and picked up her pace.

"What?" Rowen said out loud, even though she couldn't hear him.

Robyn was walking away faster now; past her apartment and further down the street.

"HEY!" Rowen barked as he opened the car door. He lurched forward to follow and almost strangled himself with the seatbelt he was still wearing.

After fighting to get free, Rowen jumped out of the car. But then, Robyn was no longer walking away, she was running. Rowen instantly sprinted after her. She may have been fast for her size, but Rowen could run like the wind and there was determination in his stride.

Robyn raced as fast as she could past a local park, but Rowen was right on her heels, quickly gaining ground. All his friends did was run. All Nikki did was run. Now Robyn was running. Rowen was sick of it. It was time to stop running now.

He lurched forward, grabbing Robyn's arm. She gasped and stumbled as he pulled her back. Rowen wrapped his arms around her so she wouldn't fall and pressed her tight against his chest. He wasn't going to let her go now.

"I got you," Rowen grinned into her ear.

"Somebody help me!" Robyn screamed. "I don't know him!"

Rowen was stunned by the sound of honest horror in Robyn's voice. She continued to scream and Rowen refused to let go. That is, until two large men came up behind him, each grabbing an arm and pulling him away.

"Wait! Wait!" Rowen pleaded to his captors. "Let me go! She's lying! Robyn, tell them!"

Robyn just stood there, watching him calmly as he was dragged away. Both the men were pretty large. Rowen was going to have a heck of a time trying to break free from that. If he could break free at all. Several spectators now stopped and stared as Rowen struggled and protested.

"Robyn, tell them you know me! I didn't do anything!" Rowen continued, yelling louder. "Robyn! **I'm sorry**!"

With those words, the redhead did step forward.

"It's okay guys. You can let him go. I know him. But thanks though."

The two strangers that had offered assistance grudgingly released Rowen's arms. He glared at them and they at him before returning to their own business. The larger guy that had Rowen's left arm walked back to his girlfriend. They both talked in hushed tones and glowered in Rowen's direction. He was probably a cheating boyfriend. That bastard.

Rowen walked up to Robyn, rubbing his bruised arm. He could not think of a time when he had been more embarrassed. From the look on Robyn's face, it was obvious she thought he deserved it.

"Can we go somewhere and talk?" Rowen asked quietly.

Robyn gave him a look that made Rowen flinch. He had seen a similar look on Nikki's face several times. It was the look she gave him before she tore into him. Robyn, however, never raised her voice. Instead, she snatched his sleeve in a tight grip and yanked him off none to gently with a "Come on, you."

She led him back to her apartment where they could talk in private. Once there, Rowen plopped himself on the couch, but Robyn had already moved into the kitchen. Rowen looked a bit perplexed as to why Robyn was not sitting with him so they could talk as he requested.

"What are you doing in there?" he called over the back of the couch. There were the sounds of pots and pans being moved around from the other side of the counter.

"I'm making us dinner," Robyn said pragmatically as she set a pan on the stove and started digging through her freezer.

Rowen rolled over on his knees so he could peek over the back of the couch. "For me, too? What are you making?"

"Does lasagna sound good to you?"

"...okay," Rowen agreed quietly.

He remained watching Robyn over the back of the couch as she busied about the kitchen preparing her different ingredients. The ball was in Robyn's court. He was in her apartment and on her turf. He would have to wait until she was ready before they could have their talk.

Once she reached a place in her recipe where she could take a break, Robyn whirled around to the face peeking over the back of her couch and put a hand on her hip.

"You're an ass, you know that?" she demanded in a stern tone.

Rowen instantly deflated, drooping his front end over the couch to where his arms almost touched the ground. "I know," he mumbled.

Robyn whipped back around, stirring her cooking hamburger. But she wasn't done with him yet.

"You sure got off easy yesterday," she continued. "When I was laying in bed thinking about it last night, boy was I pissed. Where the hell do you get off treating me like that?"

"I'm sorry," Rowen lamented.

"You're just lucky I love you or we wouldn't be having this conversation at all."

"Yes Ma'am," Rowen sighed.

"Good, now get up here and cook these noodles for me."

Rowen slowly got up and did what he was told. While boiling them, Robyn glanced over at him.

"To be honest," Robyn said in a softer tone. "It scared me more than anything else. I've never seen you angry like that."

Rowen wasn't sure what to say. Yeah, Ryo had accused him of being angry all the time these days, and it was true. But it wasn't like he wanted to be like that. It just ended up happening. His fuse was just so short...Rowen knew he could blow up just by someone looking at him wrong. But that wasn't right and it wasn't everyone else's fault, especially Robyn's. And it bothered him immensely that she had been scared of _him_.

"You never have to be scared of me," Rowen told Robyn in a soft serious voice, stirring his noodles. "I would never hurt you, Robyn. I would never hurt any girl, and you are on the top of that list."

Robyn gave him a quirky smile.

"I wasn't scared you were going to hit me or anything, Rowen. I wasn't scared _of _you." She looked at her sauce, eyes shifting away from his. "I was scared _for_ you."

There wasn't much Rowen could say to that. Robyn seemed to instinctively know this and so she continued, voice gentle as she chastised him.

"It's really selfish of you, you know? I can see how the guys are trying to work around you and let you be how you need to be. But you guys are a team...the kind that can't break up. And they have to accept you as you are, that's the only way teams work. It's not fair for you to act like a jerk and for them to have to take it because they love you and they need you. And if you acted like that around me, I don't even want to know how you've treated them when I'm not around."

Robyn stopped her lecture and gestured for him to help her drain the noodles. Rowen followed her directions mechanically. She did have a point, hard as it was to hear. He hadn't been very nice to the guys lately. They were all in rough places too, but he'd been so focused on his own life that he had barely bothered with theirs. And that wasn't right.

They fixed the lasagna quietly after that, Robyn seeming content that she had gotten her point across and now she was willing to let it all go. That blew Rowen's mind. She wasn't yelling at him, she wasn't angry with him, and she wasn't forcing him into secondary fights. No, Robyn was letting it go. Suddenly Rowen felt better than he had in a long time.

The lasagna was good, but the company was better. They ate facing each other, curled up on opposite ends of her couch. Robyn chatted about her life in Oregon. Nothing important, just funny little details of different parts of the last few years. Rowen listened silently, still humbled by her willingness to forgive him and for her extremely accurate grasp on his treatment of his friends. While Robyn talked about how much she loved the huge local trees, Rowen decided that it was time he got his life back together, and see if he too could just let things go.

The evening was pleasant and there was nothing foreboding to Rowen about Robyn's apartment--he would have been in subarmor in a second if there had been. But as the evening wore on, his thoughts began to stray towards worry. Unlike the others, he didn't blindly accept that their troubles with Damian could be over so easily. While they were here to protect the ones they loved, there was still one person out there all alone and defenseless. As he always ended up doing, Rowen couldn't help wondering just where Nikki was and if she was still okay.

* * *

Dr. Nikki Vanguard had had a long day, and it certainly didn't seem like it was going to end anytime soon. Currently she was perched on a three legged stool, one foot on the seat and the other braced at an awkward angle against the cold concrete wall of the research lab. Her left arm was looped around an exposed section of piping as a last ditch effort to save herself if she fell, which seemed more likely every passing moment. Nikki really didn't want to fall. Beneath her was a cluster of tall metal gas tanks and the last thing Nikki wanted to do was to fall and accidentally knock one of them. It would look really bad if she single-handedly managed to ruin two years worth of work with one plunge. Or blow up the lab. That was bad too.

Nikki readjusted herself carefully, sticking her free right arm above her head and inside the cabinet up to her elbow, feeling around with her fingers for a tiny little piece of glassware that she had been "assured" was there. Nikki's fingertips brushed a cold slick piece of glass, and she strained for a couple extra inches. She couldn't quite reach. Frustrated, Nikki realized that she was out of options, short of hefting herself completely off the stool and trusting that the pipe wouldn't break.

Nikki muttered a quick prayer underneath her breath, inhaled deeply, and did it. Her hand came down on the desired glassware and she grabbed it tightly. Unfortunately, as she tried to lower herself back down, only one foot landed securely on the stool, and the other slipped off the edge. Nikki yelped a curse as her errant foot dropped, causing her first foot to slip and to push the stool sideways. Her hip hit one of the tanks painfully, causing her to curse again.

"Dr. Vanguard? Are you okay?" a worried graduate student asked, poking her head around the corner to see Nikki dangling by one arm, half on a gas tank.

"Take it!" Nikki said, squeaking as her arm slipped. She shoved her other hand out in the girl's direction, waving the glassware at her. "Quick!"

The grad student scurried forward and grabbed it right before Nikki slipped all the way and landed on the nitrogen tank, bumping the valve as she rolled off and landed flat on her rear end. With a hiss, liquid nitrogen went spraying in every direction, including all over Nikki. The grad student made a dash for the valve, turning it off, but the floor was already covered with the rolling liquid, hissing and spitting as it evaporated. It would have been fun to watch if it wasn't for the quantity that was evaporating off of Nikki's lab coat and jeans, leaving her clothes freezing cold. The lab was silent as the rest of the liquid nitrogen disappeared, despite the other three curious students that had appeared to see what all the commotion was about. Then one of them started to clap enthusiastically.

"That rocked, Dr. V!" he said. Nikki glared at him as she picked her cold and battered self off the ground and brushed off her hands. The other students had started to clap as well, despite her look of irritation.

"So glad you approve," Nikki muttered, taking the glassware from the girl who had helped her.

"What is that?" the grad student asked Nikki curiously, trying to keep the smile from her face out of respect.

"Something way too expensive and way too much of a pain in my butt," Nikki replied, rubbing at her backside. The girl snorted, then clamped her hand over her mouth. Nikki gave her a small smile, knowing it had been pretty funny to anyone who wasn't her or her rear. Both females jumped as the lab door slammed open and a blaringly loud, accented voice bellowed out.

"Oh, Lipchen! Vhere are you? LIPCHEN!" The girl stifled another snort behind her hand, knowing just how much Nikki hated her newly acquired nickname.

"Where is Lipchen, flocklings?" the voice demanded of the gathered students on the other side of the lab.

"I'm over here," Nikki said, raising her voice.

"I didn't hear that! Oh LIPCHEN!!! WHERE ARE YOU---"

"I'm in HERE, Frou!" Nikki yelled back, rolling her eyes. "The very next room!"

There came the pounding of feet and a woman appeared in the doorway, fully blocking out the other room. She was massive in every sense of the word. Well over six feet tall and as broad as a barn door. The blonde woman that strode into the room made both females look tiny in comparison. Muscle covered large bones. Fat covered muscle. Freckles and the occasional mole covered fat, and all of it was wrapped up in the largest denim dress that had ever been made. Her fists were on her hips and her back was straight, causing her huge Germanic chest to thrust out at Nikki in an intimidating fashion. Nikki's instinctual sense of self-preservation made her check the buttons running up the front of the dress, which strained to contain their occupant. Nikki prayed that they held fast. There were certain things, two of them in fact, that were scary enough when covered from view, and Nikki didn't know if she could mentally or emotional handle an event that they became exposed.

"Ahhh! There you are. I thought I heard you, but I knew it couldn't have been you, Lipchen." Frou gave Nikki a pointed look, her heavy eyebrows rising expressively. Nikki sighed inwardly and forced a smile on her face.

Despite the fact that Nikki already had a doctorate and was well respected within her field, the woman in front of her ignored both facts and insisted that Nikki call her "Frou". Nikki didn't even know her first name and could barely pronounce her last, so "Frou" she became. And when Nikki didn't use "Frou" when she addressed her, the huge woman completely refused to acknowledge that Nikki was even there. From anyone else, Nikki would find it completely rude, but everyone acted as if it was to be expected from Frou.

The woman was a complete genius and the opportunity to work with her like this was an incredible break for Nikki. Should she survive laboratory boot camp with Frou, the woman's influence would ensure her that she could have her choice of work, wherever she wanted. So Nikki had sucked up her pride and attempted to learn everything she could from the woman, including when to shut her mouth and smile. She was also incredibly grateful that Frou hadn't walked in two minutes earlier.

"What are doing, Lipchen?" Frou asked, eyes scanning the room for anything being out of place, the way she always did. Thankfully all the spilled nitrogen was already evaporated.

"I found this, Frou," Nikki replied, holding up the piece of glassware proudly. At least she had done that right. Frou peered down at Nikki's hand, then flapped her hand dismissively.

"Oh, we do not need that. Put it away, we are doing something else."

Nikki's smile stayed right where it was. Frou turned to the grad student.

"You, gooselet. You put that back. We are busy." Frou looked serious and her eyebrows met together in the middle to prove it.

"…Yes, Frou," the girl stammered, glancing back at the stool in dismay. She wasn't any taller than Nikki. Nikki handed her the instrument and gave her a sympathetic look before turning and following Frou's massive form into her private office in the far corner of the lab.

"Shut the door," Frou ordered as she settled her body down into her desk chair. "And sit. Lipchen, I have something I need you to do for me. I need some help."

Nikki sat down in the much smaller chair in front of the desk, her curiosity piqued. Frou was not the type to admit she needed anything from anyone.

"Lipchen, you have not been in my lab for that long, but you are well versed in the research we are doing here," she stated.

"Of course, Frou," Nikki agreed. She had to know what was going on, it was part of her job.

"And you feel comfortable speaking about our work in front of others," Frou said, as if it wasn't a question. Nikki smiled ruefully as she nodded. She didn't like to give presentations but that came with the territory as well.

"Then good. In three weeks time you will go to conference and speak for me. I have surgery planned and cannot go. They will wonder who you are, this tiny little Lipchen in front of them, but you will wow them with your abilities and they will love you the way they love me." Frou placed one beefy hand on her bosom, sighing deeply as she thought about how much she was loved. Nikki stifled a giggle and nodded seriously.

"Sure, Frou. That's not a problem."

The woman beamed and Nikki felt a brief flash of affection for the gigantic woman who ran roughshod over her everyday life. Even though she knew that she shouldn't ask, the words were out of her mouth before she could stop them.

"Is everything alright, Frou? With the surgery and all?"

Frou leaned back in her chair, an expression of tragic horror on her face. "Oh Lipchen! You do not know my pain! Oh, no one knows my pain!" The woman placed her hands on her hips and squeezed dramatically. "My poor little tubes, they cannot take much more!"

"More?" Nikki asked hesitantly, flinching back from the way Frou gripped and wiggled her flesh. It caused the rest of her to waggle in response, and Nikki jerked her eyes up to Frou's face.

"They need a rest! Oh my poor little tubes need such a rest. And rest I will give them, and then there will be no more chance of little lipchens, no more of the squeezing and the grunting and the birthing---"

"OH!" Nikki gasped, holding up her hands in front of her and jumping out of her seat. "Oh, I understand Frou, no need to explain anymore! It wasn't any of my business! Oh gee, I think someone's calling for me and I better help them now."

Frou cocked her head to the side and listened, still holding her hips. "I hear nothing, Lipchen. Sit back down, we are talking woman talk. It is good to be woman with other women, and you, you speak with few women."

Nikki sat back down slowly, trying to look just to the side of Frou's face and not directly at her.

"I talk to people," she murmured. "I just concentrate on my work."

"You work too hard," Frou declared. "Most of my flocklings, they work as little as possible. But you, every day and every night you are here. Work, work, work. Now you must rest, like my poor little tubes." She jiggled for emphasis, "And let others love you as they love me. You will take vacation to the conference and make me proud."

"That's very nice of you, Frou," Nikki said, pleased. The woman gave very little praise and it made Nikki feel good. She wasn't about to explain why she insisted on burying herself in her work. No one needed to know about that, but it was nice to be appreciated.

"So where am I going?" Nikki asked as Frou pulled out a file folder and slid it across the desk to her.

"Japan. Toyoma, Japan. You speak Japanese, I have heard you with students. There you will speak for me at ISC conference and meet many people. They will love you and give us money to continue our work. Then you will return rested and we will make much progress. Here is flight and hotel reservations, Lipchen. Now you go."

Nikki however remained where she was seated, face losing color as she stared at the folder lying in front of her. Anywhere. Anywhere but there. Hadn't she had enough already? Hadn't she done enough? Was fate really this sick…?

"Lipchen? You look ill. You are white as sheet. What is wrong?" Frou demanded, leaning forward.

Nikki shook her head, eyes half glazed over.

"I can't…I can't go, Frou. I'm sorry." Nikki jerked her eyes away from the folder, then up to her boss. "I just can't."

"Why?" Frou's voice had dropped to a dangerous quietness but Nikki was too caught up to notice. She half pulled out of her chair and partially stood, shaking her head.

"I'm sorry, Frou. Japan is…is too far away. I can't go there. I don't like it there. I can't go." Nikki shook herself and backed towards the door. "Thank you anyway," she muttered as she turned to go.

"Lipchen…" Frou said warningly.

Nikki kept walking, knowing that she had to get out of the office before the other woman found a way to change her mind.

"LIPCHEN!"

The bellow made her jump. Nikki cringed and turned around.

"Yes, Frou?"

The larger woman had raised one of her eyebrows, and the furry thing jutted out at her in disapproval. Nikki wasn't sure what was worse, meeting those eyes or meeting that eyebrow.

"Sit." Frou pointed perfunctorily at the seat next to her. Nikki hesitated, and Frou gestured more forcibly towards the chair. Nikki sighed inwardly and moved back to her boss, her feet dragging.

"So. You are my student, are you not?" Nikki grunted an acknowledgment, biting down on her tongue so she wouldn't remind Frou of the fact that she had more education then almost anyone in this place. More so than anyone except this woman in front of her. She shouldn't have to go anywhere she didn't want to go. Anywhere that scared the hell out of her.

"And you are capable of speaking Japanese, are you not?" Frou drilled her, the eyebrow waggling forcefully. Nikki nodded, her face pained. "And you are not unwell? You are not infected with viral plague, you are not dying of hepatitis or tuberculosis, and you do not expect to lose limb to gangrene anytime soon, yes?"

"…No, Frou." Nikki actually hung her head, shifting uncomfortably.

"So you refuse to do this, this career changing opportunity that I have presented you, forcing me to go in your stead when I have a surgery planned on my poor little tubes." Frou once again clutched dramatically at her hips with both hands, giving her heft a violent shake. "For no better reason than that you don't like Japan."

Nikki tried desperately not to look directly at her mentor, mostly because of the disturbing way the woman was clinging to her own flesh and trying to get Nikki to understand that her "poor little tubes" were at stake. Nikki squelched the desire to barf and run for cover.

"You must understand!" Frou continued to urge as she jiggled her hips more expressively. " I cannot keep this up, Lipchen, Mine husband, he is very amorous. Every day and night, all he wants is the sex! The sex here, the sex there, there is not a place in our home that he does not want the sex! And what can I do? Hans, he is very good at the sex, so I cannot say no. Sometimes he starts growling at me like animal, like animal lipchen! It is sexy and I am all woman, I cannot say no! Last night he was bear in our kitchen and I was trainer---"

Nikki's gasp of horror wasn't enough to stop her from continuing.

"I keep whip in mine dresser drawer and I said 'No Hans! Bad! Bad bear Hans! Naughty bad bear Hans!'" Frou imitated a whipping motion as she spoke and Nikki turned pale.

"That's…awful Frou," Nikki managed to squeak out and Frou nodded vigorously in agreement.

"In no place am I safe from him, Lipchen! In mine garden, in mine toilet! Every time I bend over, there is Hans! Ohhhh!" She threw up her hands in dismay and gestured to the office.

"Even in mine lab, Lipchen. Mine LAB! Mine office! Mine chairs!"

Nikki gasped again and lurched out of her seat, disgust clear on her face. A sudden look of realization spread over the German woman's face.

"Oh, I know what problem is," Frou informed her. "I know why my poor little Lipchen loved foreign country once and now fears to go back. It is Japan man. Yes! Japan man is reason!"

Nikki just stared at her.

"I can see it in your eyes Lipchen as we talk of matters of man and woman. This Japan man, he is problem, yes?"

Nikki looked uncomfortable for a different reason now. "Well, kind of, I guess. It–it's really complicated, Frou. I can't really explain–"

"Do not worry Lipchen! Frou knows of these matters!" She held her thumb and her finger close together. "Japan man, he is small, like this? Or maybe limp, like Swedish noodle? Japan man is noodle?"

Nikki's face shot beet red. "NO! No, Frou! No, Japan man---I mean Rowen, I mean… argh! Just no, okay! You've got it all wrong!"

"Maybe is time to try new things?" Frou suggested, ignoring her completely. "Man is not always happy with same thing every time. Even Hans is not always fearless like bear. Sometimes he is soft like kitten, and then I must make him hard, like warrior! He is man who likes variety! Sometimes I use mine whip and sometimes mine handcuffs! Hans also likes to try different positions, like in mine book. Come, come see Lipchen! I have mine book here. I will show you which ones I use when–"

"Oh my god, Frou! I'll go, I'll go! Just please, please stop!" Nikki cried out in horror, before clamping her hand over her mouth, realizing that she had just agreed. She dropped her face in her hands, wishing she could somehow strike these last few minutes from her mind forever. Frou gave her a satisfied look, content. Nikki took the folder and stood up, shaking her head in amazement.

"Thank you, Lipchen!" Frou said in a friendly way. "I like our woman talk, it is much fun. You come back from Japan–from this trouble man of yours, you tell me what you try this time, yes?" That was her version of a goodbye.

"Sure, Frou," Nikki whispered in a defeated voice as she left the office, feeling as if her entire soul had been defiled. "No problem…"


	4. Chapter 4

**The Blinding Mask**

Chapter Four

Robyn crouched in the darkness, her heart thudding in her chest and ears. The entire apartment was still and silent, save for her own heavy breathing. She fought to keep down her panic and stay in control; praying nothing would find her. The large flashlight she held was clutched tightly to her chest. She didn't have it on at the moment so she could better hide, but she was ready to flip it on or use it as a weapon if needs be.

There was that sound again and Robyn froze. She held her breath to better hear in the darkness. It was that same faint scratch, scratching she had heard earlier. Currently she was crouched in the kitchen with her back braced against the counter. But she could hear it from there; the movement coming from her bedroom. Like someone or something was trying to get in. Or, possibly, was already in. Even though she was surrounded by darkness, Robyn's eyes were locked in the direction of the hall. She was straining to see if anything was in it; if her door was being opened; if there was anyone standing there.

The sudden knock on the front door was almost enough to give Robyn a heart attack. She clutched her flashlight tighter, heart beating wildly. Someone was at the door! Was it a friend or a stranger? She had no way of knowing.

"Robyn, it's me. You can open the door," came a familiar voice.

Even though relief rushed over her, the door was still far away. As quiet as she could, she rose from her crouched position, slowly making her way. She kept her flashlight at her side, holding it like it was a bat, just in case. Even as she reached the knob, she continued to keep a wary eye on the hallway and an ear open to the darkness.

The walkway outside was just as dark, but she could see Ryo's face from the flashlight he was carrying.

"Man, you weren't kidding when you said your power went out," Ryo stated. "The whole building is dark."

"Oh Ryo!" Robyn exclaimed as she threw herself at him. "Thank you so much for coming! I've been so freaked out!"

Ryo put one arm on her shaking shoulders as he shined his flashlight into the room. It had surprised him when she called his cell phone so suddenly late that night. She was whispering and she had sounded scared when he talked to her on the phone. It had worried him, and he had run all the way over to her building. However, now that she was safe next to him, Ryo was kind of glad.

He had been worried lately that Robyn was getting fed up with seeing him almost every day. She wasn't as social as Kento or as clingy as Rowen and she liked having her space. She usually had enough of him when he came to walk her home every day. Most of it, of course, was good natured chiding. But it was still obvious she didn't find her personal male escort necessary. And while Ryo was happy to play the "bad guy" in all this so Robyn would be safe, it really made him happy that she would still call him if she ever needed anything. Even if it was because she was freaking out in the darkness.

"So what happened?" Ryo asked as he took a step inside.

"The power went out about an hour ago," Robyn explained. She had pulled away from him, but was still keeping one hand on his sleeve. Feeling a bit braver now, she was shining her flashlight around the room as well. "I was doing okay for a while, but then I started hearing noises outside my bedroom window. Like there was something scratching at it, or like someone was trying to get in."

Ryo paused to listen to the stillness of the house. He even stretched out his armor powers a bit to see if he could sense anything amiss. Everything seemed normal and quiet. He shot Robyn a dubious look.

"Hey," Robyn defended. "The dark I can handle, it's rapists that I'm afraid of."

"Fair enough," Ryo chuckled. "Do you want me to check it out?"

"Yes please," Robyn said in a small voice. She looked torn. She wanted Ryo to go check out her room, but at the same time, didn't want him to leave her alone and was definitely not going in there with him.

Ryo kindly took her arm and led her to the couch where she instantly curled up in the corner. She looked pale and still startled and slightly chilled. Robyn must have been close to going to bed when it happened. She was only wearing a pair of tiny shorts and a tank top. Ryo was still pretty warm from his jog over there. He shrugged off his large jacket and laid it over her.

"Thanks," Robyn said weakly, trying to pull as much of herself inside it as possible.

"Wait here and call if you need anything," Ryo said.

He then proceeded down the dark hall, flashlight in hand. The bathroom was checked out first; inside the shower, behind the door. Then the bedroom next. The door to Robyn's room was cracked slightly ajar. Ryo opened it all the way and quickly raked over the entire room with his light. Everything looked normal and empty. Ryo checked behind the door and then the closet. He kept his ears and his senses open; shining the light under the bed. Last, he checked the window. No one seemed to be outside and the window was shut and locked tight.

Turning back, Ryo noticed something sitting on Robyn's bed. He swept his flashlight over it and revealed a doll resting against the pillow. Ryo regarded it dubiously. Robyn didn't seem the type to be into dolls. But maybe he didn't know her as well as he thought. It had a beautifully painted porcelain face in the style of western dolls and red curly hair. But it was wearing a Japanese Kimono. A strange combination. But no more strange than Robyn herself, a red haired Japanese girl. Maybe there was a reason she kept this doll.

Ryo kept the light shined upon the doll as he stretched out with his armor senses once more. He was still unable to feel anything out of the ordinary. But right then in the darkness, a disturbing thought came unbidden to him. None of them, even with their armor powers, could sense when Damian was right behind them…

A chill went up Ryo's spine and he saw movement out of the corner of his eye in the doorway. He quickly shined his light over there, but the doorway was clear. Ryo blinked. Maybe he was freaking himself out now, but he could have sworn he saw something the size of a child standing there. He stepped out of the room and shined the light up and down the hall. Empty.

Deciding he was just making himself paranoid now, Ryo returned to the living room. Robyn was still sitting in the couch where he left her; swallowed up in his jacket and pointing her flashlight towards the ceiling.

"Everything looks okay," Ryo told her as he sat himself down on the couch. "The window's still locked, too. Maybe it was just a cat or something scratching at it."

"I guess," Robyn sighed, slouching further. She didn't look too comforted by Ryo's assurance.

The two sat in silence. Robyn's toes were the only thing peeking out from Ryo's jacket and they fidgeted from either the cold or her nervousness. Ryo sucked in a deep breath.

"You want to come over to my place? I only have a couch, but I do have power."

A smile crept over Robyn's face. "That might be good. I don't know when it's going to come back on."

"Great," Ryo announced as he jumped back to his feet. "Pack up some stuff and we'll go."

He escorted Robyn back to her room, but politely declined from watching her as she dug through her drawers and closet for clothes and other things. Ryo had been all through her room earlier, but for some reason, when the owner was inside it, being in a girl's room was kind of embarrassing. He wasn't sure why, but he felt like he shouldn't be there. Probably because he never had any sisters. He doubted Kento, Sage, and Cye ever had such problems.

Robyn noticed Ryo's discomfort and shook her head. He was so funny sometimes. Quickly she packed up the clothes she needed for the day, found some shoes and grabbed a towel. Lastly, she grabbed her pillow off the empty bed. Then they left, Robyn still wearing Ryo's jacket as she locked up.

"Thanks for doing this," she said again as they walked down the street, both carrying her belongings. "I feel kind of silly I got so scared." She was sure she looked kind of silly, too with her old sneakers, her pajamas and Ryo's jacket.

"It's fine," Ryo replied lightly. "I don't mind at all. I meant it when I said you could call me for anything."

Robyn quickened her pace so she could fall in step right next to him and, to Ryo's surprise, looped her arm in his.

"This neighborhood's kind of creepy at night," she admitted. "I'm glad I'm only here for the three months. The houses are so old around here. That one," she nodded to one house in particular that had all its lights out. "I never see with its lights on, but I swear, when I go by it sometimes I feel like someone's watching me."

Ryo just chuckled. "And you accuse me of being paranoid."

Robyn made an argumentative sound. "Well you're a guy. You'll never know what it feels like to be a single woman living alone. Sometimes being paranoid will keep you safe."

"That's why I'm here," Ryo smiled down at her. "To make sure you stay safe."

Robyn studied his expression, looking curious.

"What is with that grin on your face?" she demanded.

"Huh?" Ryo wondered. He was completely unaware he had been smiling.

"You had this dopey expression," Robyn informed him. "My power went out and I'm freaking a bit and you're grinning like it's your birthday. Don't tell me you get off on this kind of stuff."

Ryo scratched the back of his neck, embarrassed and unsure of what to say.

Robyn laughed.

"Oh my gosh! You do! You just live to play the hero role, don't you Ryo? I bet nothing makes your day more than being the big, strong hero for a lady in distress."

She laughed again and Ryo slumped, his hands in his pockets. Not that it happened very often, but having a girl laugh at him was no fun.

"So?" he pouted. "Is there anything wrong with that?"

"No," Robyn confirmed with a smile. "There's not. In fact, it's really cute."

She continued to chuckle a bit to herself and Ryo was glad for the cover of darkness so she couldn't see his cheeks burning a bit red.

Robyn could still easily see the embarrassment on his face and playfully bumped into him. "Tell you what, since you did this for me, I'll start giving you an easier time about always picking me up, especially since you seem to like it so much." She winked at him. "Besides, what girl wouldn't mind letting herself get in distress every now and then if it meant a strong, handsome hero was going to save her, huh?"

Ryo turned his head and looked at her, his eyes wide. Robyn let out a loud, uncomfortable laugh that drifted off into an uncomfortable sigh.

"Ha ha.. Ah... Awkward..."

The silence that followed was also awkward until Ryo broke into a fit of laughter. Robyn allowed herself a few chuckles as well and watched him with a smile. Ryo laughed like a little boy; cute and innocent. But there was also relief in that laughter. As if he had been waiting for a reason to laugh for a long time. And in that moment, Robyn realized she had never heard any of them really laugh since she had come back. All their laughter, all their happy smiles were gone. In their place were cautious, good natured words and tight grins that really didn't mean anything.

It made Robyn a little sad. She smiled a bit more as Ryo's laughter died down, but she pushed the joke no further.

It was a relief to finally reach Ryo's apartment. Locked door, windows with closed blinds, lights that actually worked and someone she felt safe with in there with her. It had been a couple of years since Robyn had lived with any roommates. She sometimes forgot how pleasant it was just to have another body in the house. Even if that person wasn't strong or good at fighting, just knowing that one wasn't alone inside was a nice, safe feeling. But being in a room with someone like Ryo made Robyn feel even safer.

Ryo dropped Robyn's bag near his sofa and then plopped onto it. Robyn sat next to him, hugging her pillow to her lap.

"I know I've said this about fifty times already, but I really appreciate you doing this for me, Ryo."

Ryo let out a soft chuckle and then rested a hand on her head. "You've always been like that. You're always so apologetic when any of us do anything for you. We don't mind–none of us. We're all friends. Friends are there to help each other. You don't have to say you're sorry."

Robyn shrugged. "I know," she smiled lightly. "It's a habit that's hard to break." She leaned in and put her arms around Ryo's upper torso. "And you have really been a good friend lately, Ryo. Even thought I don't always act like it, I really do appreciate it."

"You're welcome," Ryo smiled kindly as he put an arm around her.

She felt different this time when Ryo touched her and he soon figured out why. Practically all Ryo touched was skin. He had momentarily forgotten that Robyn was still in her pajamas. One of her thin straps had even fallen off her shoulder and there was more creamy, white skin than Ryo was used to seeing on her. Ryo quickly tore his eyes away from her deep neck line only to find his eyes instantly focused on her smooth, pale legs. And even when he forced himself to look elsewhere, he could still feel that soft cool skin against his finger tips.

"Mmm.. You're always so warm," Robyn mumbled as she moved a bit closer.

"And you," Ryo said, trying to control his shaking voice. Why was it shaking? "Are always so cold." He reached over to tug at the comforter on the back of the couch and pull it over her, covering her down to her toes.

Robyn tried not to let it out, but she sighed despite of herself and continued to stay where she was. She knew it was a bit odd, snuggling up to Ryo on his couch, but she couldn't help it. She wanted this just a little bit longer.

All the others, even though they smiled at her and talked to her, Robyn couldn't help but feel like they were keeping her at a distance somehow. She felt like they were shutting themselves off from her; even Cye. She didn't like it and there was nothing she could do about it.

With Ryo, it felt like he was the only one staying open with her. She knew well he was hiding something he didn't want to tell her just as much as the others. But at the same time, he didn't seem as closed off as the others. Where they seemed to have locked away a part of themselves, Ryo was still all there. He was older and a bit weathered, but the real Ryo was still there. And through him, Robyn wanted to imagine that she was holding a little bit of all of them when she had him in her arms. She prayed silently that maybe through this the others could feel her heart and know that she wanted nothing but good things for them and she wanted them to be happy. And she wished whatever burden they were carrying could soon be lifted so they could smile and laugh and love like they used to.

Robyn just felt bad for Ryo now; that she was forcing him to sit there and suffer her silly actions for a bit longer. She apologized in her mind for that as well.

"Hey, are you okay?" Ryo asked, obviously picking up on her mood. He brushed a few strands from her face as his eyes clouded with concern.

Robyn felt bad again for causing that expression on his face.

"Yeah, kinda. I just worry about you guys sometime. Every one of you seems to be going through some personal trial. And it's probably important you all do these things by yourselves. But I still wish there was something I could do to help."

Ryo gave a bittersweet smile who's meaning Robyn could only guess at. "You are helping, trust me," he said softly.

Robyn sighed and rested her cheek on his chest, not sure if she really believed him.

"Hey Robyn, can I ask you something that's been bothering me?" Ryo then said in a lighter voice.

"Sure," Robyn said tiredly. The scare of the night was finally wearing on her and the couch and the warm body next to her were so comfortable.

"A couple weeks ago, when I called you that one time when you walked home by yourself, do you remember that? And you said I wasn't your parents and I wasn't Cye. What exactly did that mean?"

There was a bit of silence as Robyn tried to recall the conversation.

"Oh, heh. That. I don't know why I put it that way, it just kind of popped out. It was a couple years ago, I was just thinking one day and suddenly made a promise to myself that if I ever saw Cye again I would listen to him more. I mean, he's always been so important to me but I always sucked at showing it. So I thought to myself if I could do something to change that when I saw him again, what would I do? And that's what I thought of. Kind of silly, huh? I mean, it's not like I've had a chance to try it out even. I don't see him too much even now that I'm back in Japan. It was just some silly promise."

She felt the vibrations in Ryo's chest as he chuckled lightly. "There's nothing wrong with it," he replied. "So when are you going to resolve to listen to me?"

He felt more than saw Robyn smiling. "Mmm... maybe in a couple more years."

Ryo laughed softly at the statement then fell silent. Robyn managed to snuggle a little bit closer, and her breathing began to slow. She was tired, they both were. Already the darkness behind his window shades was growing lighter.

When Robyn spoke, her voice was muffled and sleepy. "Can we stay like this, just a while longer?"

"I'm here for as long as you need me," came Ryo's gentle reply.

Robyn murmured something faint that sounded like "I'm sorry". Ryo didn't answer as she was already fast asleep. But the truth of the matter was he really didn't mind.

* * *

Sage jerked awake, half sitting up in bed and gasping for breath. The pale sheet that covered his body was damp with sweat and tightly twisted in between his fingers. He remained motionless, head bent down, chest heaving. Finally he shuddered and buried his face in one hand. Another night. Another horrific nightmare.

Just when Sage thought that they had reached as bad as they could get, he would close his eyes and find his mind lost in something worse. He was on the border of not even trying to sleep at all, because the rest he was getting wasn't helping him any. And he didn't think he could take one more night of…of seeing her like that. And knowing he hadn't been able to stop it.

Sage rolled out of bed and stood wearily, his muscles sore from tossing and turning all night. He padded barefoot into his bathroom and turned on the shower. He looked in the mirror as he waited for the water to heat up. What he saw there he didn't like. His face looked drawn and haggard, worn and tired. Not the face of a man his age. Turning away, Sage retreated to the shower, attempting to let the steaming hot water massage out his worries and his fears. It did help a little. He wasn't Cye. Water wasn't his cure-all, but he could close his eyes and lift his face up into the showerhead and feel like he was being cleansed of some of his guilt. Of course, by the end of the night, he always felt right back where he started, so it was only a quick fix.

Sage slipped out of the shower almost an hour later, wrapping a towel around his waist and moving back into his bedroom. There was a knock on his door.

"Yes?" he called. "Hold on a moment…" He slipped on a pair of pants and opened the door. It was his youngest sister, looking slightly irritated.

"Took you long enough," she muttered. "Hope there's still hot water for the rest of us…" By "us" she meant "her". Poor Satsuki had not led the easiest life since Yayoi had gotten married and was busy with her first child. Their grandfather was now intrusting much of the training in the dojo to Sage, as well as the numerous social events that the Date family needed to be represented at. So Satsuki got stuck with the bulk of the chores and errands and it was obvious that she didn't like it.

"Grandfather wants to speak with you. He's out in the gardens." She gave him another exasperated look and turned away. However Sage reached out and wrapped an arm around her collarbone, pulling her backwards to him and hugging her.

"Hey!" Satsuki cried, "You're still all wet!" But her eyes were puzzled. She wasn't used to any outward displays of affection from her family, especially from Sage. Still he hugged her a second longer, and she twisted beneath his arm so that she could hug him back.

"Are you okay?" she asked quietly. Sage just gave her a small smile, and touched her cheek with the back of his hand. He'd never been the type to wrestle or mess up her hair, and a moment later he had withdrawn back into his room. Satsuki stayed where she was, waiting until Sage re-emerged fully clothed and presentable. She led him to the gardens, for some reason loathe to let him walk by himself. Her brother was hard to read, but there was a loneliness to him now that made her sad. Satsuki had a hunch as to what her grandfather wanted to speak with Sage about and she was pretty sure her brother would not like it.

"Thank you, Satsuki," their grandfather murmured when they had joined him in the gardens. "You may leave to do your chores." The young woman sighed and withdrew, giving Sage one last speculative look as she did. Sage joined the older man on the hard wooden bench.

"You wanted me, Grandfather," Sage said politely, bowing his head.

"Yes, Sage. There is something that we must speak about."

Sage listened quietly as his grandfather spoke, his face never once betraying any emotion. He had known this would happen eventually, he just hoped that it would be held off a little longer.

"Sage, I feel like we have been very patient with you. We have given you the freedom to come and go as you wished. We have given you the opportunity to find a suitable place within the community that was acceptable to you, to enjoy life as is meant for youth. But you are no longer a child, and it is not wise to let a man linger in adolescence. You are a man and the heir to this family. It is time you set aside your frivolities and bear the responsibilities that you have eluded for so long."

His grandfather paused for a long breath, and Sage had a moment to try and soak in what was being said. Frivolities? His life was full of many things, but never any of those.

"Sage, we had hoped that you would have found a suitable wife by now, a woman that was of honorable decent. It is why I have allowed you the opportunity to mingle so much with the other clans. I wanted…" the old man trailed off, eyes unfocused as he continued. "I had hoped that you would have found someone that was honorable and that you loved. I wished that chance for you. Tell me, have you found it?"

Part of Sage died inside. This was not how he wanted.

"…No grandfather," Sage whispered. There was nothing else he could say. Yes he had fallen in love. But it hadn't gone anywhere and it hadn't been allowed to go anywhere because of one of his best friends, and none of that mattered anymore now anyway.

An aged yet strong hand rested down firmly on his shoulder.

"I know that you would wish for more time, but there is little time left to be had. We need to strengthen our ties to one of the other families. It is a time honored tradition to join one strong clan to another through marriage. If you cannot find a suitable wife, Sage, then I will make the arrangements for you."

"Grandfather…" Sage started to say, but then he shook his head, stopping himself. What did it matter anyway? The one he had wanted was so far beyond him now that any other choices were equally inadequate in his eyes. His chance was gone.

His grandfather continued speaking, of the different clans and the eligible daughters. Sage tried to listen, pretended to listen, but found that what had remained of his attention span was gone. Tiredly he watched the leaves blowing in the breeze, and tried to clear his mind of all thought. Especially that of beautiful blue eyes that would have loved to watch even a single leaf flutter around. Finally when his grandfather was done, Sage had no choice but to bow his head in acceptance.

* * *

Robyn looked up from her computer when she felt someone enter the room. She was a bit surprised, it wasn't whom she would have expected. Kento or any of his family, definitely. Or any of the other employees at the restaurant. Or even Ryo. But not this one.

"Hey Sage," she greeted pleasantly. "How's it going?"

"Not... too bad," the blonde said in a quiet, hesitant voice. He lingered in the doorway of the office, never having been in there before.

"Have a seat." Robyn off handedly waved to the empty chair near by as she continued with her work. "I just barely managed to dig it out of all these piles of paperwork. Kento said he didn't even know there was a second chair in here."

Sage sat quietly, painting a much different picture than the one Robyn was used to. The blonde never did speak much, but he had a presence when he entered the room. One of confidence and mystery. This one was just...quiet.

"Been a while," Robyn said as she continued to type at the computer. "I haven't seen you in a couple weeks. Keeping busy?"

"Yeah," Sage admitted as he thought about it. "Between work and socially representing my family, I stay pretty busy." Then he added as an after thought. "I had a nice long "talk" with my grandfather today."

Robyn made a face full of pain and sympathy for him. She knew the way Sage said "talk" he meant his grandfather talked at him. "I'm sorry."

"He says he wants me to get married. He might already have someone picked out for me." Sage wasn't sure why those words came out of his mouth. It wasn't Robyn's business or her problem. But Sage was surprised he really wanted to at least say something to someone–preferably someone who did not know he had already fallen in love once.

"Sage, the majority of the female population in Japan wants you to get married and have a wife picked out for you, too," Robyn responded back, still typing at her computer. "But that doesn't mean its going to happen either."

Sage frowned a bit at her. "You don't sound too worried about me."

"Should I be?" Robyn asked. "That's too bad your grandfather's pushing you. But I know how stubborn you are. He's not going to have his way unless you give in first. And I really hope you didn't come see me just to persuade me into some elaborate scheme where I pretend to be your fiancé and we trick your grandfather into giving up arranging someone for you. It doesn't bode well in the sitcoms. It won't bode well for you."

Sage's mouth ticked up at the side which was usually as near to a smile as Robyn couldn't get out of him. "Actually, I was hoping you would want to get something to eat with me."

Robyn looked over at him skeptically. "You mean like on a date?"

His smile went up a little higher. "If that's what you want to call it."

"I'm not going to marry you, Sage."

Sage clutched at his chest in mock disappointment and heart break. It was a weak gesture at a joke. But it got Robyn chuckling. She leaned back in her chair to look at the clock above her. It really wasn't that late yet. While working for the Faun's they said her hours were whatever she wanted them to be. She could leave at any time. But Robyn didn't want to take advantage of that. Plus she needed the hours.

"Do you mind if I work for about...hmm... twenty more minutes? I like to at least put in a full day."

"That's fine," Sage agreed. "I'm sorry, I should have called first. I don't know what I was thinking." He suddenly looked tired and rubbed his face. "I just--" In all actuality, Sage knew exactly what he was thinking. That dream had unsettled him all day and he thought he would have gone nuts if he hadn't gone out to see her. He had to see someone and going to visit Mia was just out of the question these days. So Robyn was it. Sage just wanted to see someone that he cared about and confirm with his own eyes they were safe. That was all the rationality he could pull out of that feeling. But he would never be able to explain that to her out loud.

"Oh, don't worry about it," Robyn waved him off. "I don't mind if any of you drop by. It's a nice surprise. As long as you don't mind waiting a bit."

"That's fine. Take your time," Sage replied.

The room settled into silence save for the ticking of the clock and the clicking of Robyn's fingers on the key board. After a few minutes, Robyn heard a heavy sigh and became aware of Sage folding his arms and resting his head on the corner of her desk. She paused to look at him through the corner of her eye. He looked so tired. Not just from a night without sleep, but several nights. And days full of worry and stress. She didn't know what Sage's problem was, but it was obviously enough to affect his health and she felt bad for him.

She reached out and ran her hand over his back, lightly scratching with her finger tips. Half expecting Sage to pop and eye open and look at her, Robyn was a bit surprised when all he did was sigh in relief and let her continue. Sage was usually very jumpy about being touched. But today, he was either too tired to put up a fuss, or he didn't care any more. Robyn continued to rub his back and type with one hand until she heard one final heavy breath and then Sage was asleep.

When the time came that Robyn said she could leave, she didn't have the heart to wake him. She also wasn't going to miss the opportunity to put some more work time in. Another hour passed before Ryo poked his head into the small office. He paused a bit in the doorway when he saw that Robyn wasn't alone this time.

Robyn saw movement out of the corner of her eye and turned her head, smiling as she saw Ryo standing there. He gave her a curious look, but Robyn just placed a finger over her mouth to silence any question he wanted to speak.

However, Ryo didn't have to remain silent for long. Sage's eyebrow twitched as if something were disturbing his slumber and he raised his head. The first thing he did was look right in Ryo's direction as if he had known he was there all along. In truth, Sage had known. It was Ryo's presence that had awoken him. More like the presence of Ryo and his armor. Even when asleep, there was no way Sage's senses could ignore when another armor bearer entered the room. The aura they gave off was just too powerful.

"Hello, Ryo," Sage greeted in a placid tone.

"Sage? What are you doing here?" Ryo asked. The question was genuine curiosity. Ryo really had not expected to see the blonde any time soon.

Sage politely covered a yawn. "Just taking a nap until..." He looked up at the clock and his eyes widened a bit when he saw it was more than an hour later than expected to be. He turned to Robyn with a questioning look.

Robyn smiled back sheepishly. "Sorry, you looked like you needed the sleep."

Sage stretched his back, wincing as the hunched muscles were moved again. He had not been sleeping in the best position and now he was paying the price for it.

"Sorry," Robyn apologized again.

Sage just waved her off. Then he sighed, rubbing his face in his hands and trying to wake himself up. Robyn watched him, feeling out of place. This really wasn't the Sage she knew. He looked so normal; like everyone else. So human. What happened to the mysterious, untouchable being she used to know? What power defeated this god and forced him to be like the rest of mortal man? It was so bizarre to Robyn, it took her a moment to let this new portrait of Sage soak in.

"So do you guys have plans then?" Ryo asked, catching both Sage and Robyn's attention.

"A couple plans, actually," Robyn told him. "I was hoping to go visit Cye and then Sage and I were going to get something to eat." She turned to Sage. "If you don't mind going there first. We won't be long because Cye's still working. I just want to see where he works and say hi."

On the inside, Sage wasn't so thrilled with seeing Cye today. But he still managed a weak smile. "That's fine. It was rude of me not to call ahead of time."

"Eh, you already paid the price," Robyn grinned, lightly slapping him on his sore back.

Sage flinched again at the touch and Robyn did not look remorseful at all. She flipped off her computer and the two got up, Robyn stepping out of the office first. She paused to address Ryo still standing there.

"You're off escort duty today," she sang at him, punching him lightly in the arm.

She didn't wait to see Ryo's disappointed face as she left.

'_What am I going to do with my evening now?_' Ryo wondered, face dropping at the thought of how boring it would be.

Sage, however, did catch Ryo's expression and raised an eyebrow at him.

"I know, I know," Ryo retorted as he shoved his hands in his pockets. "I need to get a hobby."

Sage gave Ryo an amused look over his shoulder as they both followed Robyn to the entrance of the restaurant. Sage politely held open the front door for Robyn, and she smiled appreciatively at him as she slipped on her jacket.

"Bye Ryo!" Robyn called, turning her back to Wildfire and heading through the door. Trying not to be too bummed, Ryo watched her go. As she passed by Sage, it made Ryo smile. The blonde man towered over the redhead. Sometimes Robyn's presence was so large he forgot how small she really was. But she had filled out since he'd seen her last…she had curves now, and her hips swayed slightly as she walked. For some reason Ryo found them mesmerizing and he continued to watch her leave. He was oblivious to the small smile that touched Sage's lips as he shared a look with Kento, who had just come out from the kitchen. Sage followed Robyn outside, his body momentarily blocking Robyn's.

"Dude…you're not seriously checking out Sage's ass right now, are you?" Kento suddenly asked. Ryo jerked his gaze from the door, looking a bit wild-eyed.

"What?! I was not!" Ryo sputtered.

"Ahhh," Kento nodded sagely. "Then it was Robyn's."

"No, Kento! I was just watching them leave…" Ryo continued to protest, flushing for what felt like the twentieth time since last night.

Kento grinned at Ryo and started wiping down the counter.

"Suit yourself buddy. But you were definitely ass watching, and it was one or the other." He stopped wiping and cocked his head to the side, pursing his lips speculatively.

"Or maybe it was both…"

"Shut up, Kento!" Ryo shot out, zipping up his own jacket and flopping down in a seat.

* * *

The phone rang three times before she was able to get off the other line and answer it.

"Hello?" Mia said, handing off a folder to Masahiro's secretary as she did.

"Where are you?" came a tried sounding voice over the line.

"Work, as always," Mia replied. "Downtown if you want to be more exact. Where are you?"

"Japan, as always. The airport if you want to be more exact."

The defeated, self mocking tone to the voice made Mia stop working and lean back in her chair.

"Nikki…" Mia started to try and reassure her friend that everything would be okay, but she couldn't find the words to do it. That wasn't something that she knew for certain, and she was tired of putting a positive spin on things.

There was silence on the phone for a brief moment, then Nikki spoke again sounding more cheerful.

"The hotel I'm staying at has a wonderful mini bar, the pamphlet says," Nikki told Mia, making the redhead smile. "And I have some recent mental images that need to be scrubbed away with copious amounts of vodka."

"Do I want to know?" Mia asked, amused.

"Only if the sex life of a middle aged German woman and her choice of positions are of interest to you."

"Ugh…" Mia shuddered.

"Vodka. Lots and lots of vodka," Nikki repeated.

"Give me an hour and I'm there."

True to her word, an hour later Mia found herself cross-legged on Nikki's hotel bed, shifting through a collection of tiny bottles. Nikki had flopped herself next to her, and was flipping through television stations, trying to find something that wasn't in Japanese. Mia picked up one of the bottles and waggled it in front of Nikki's face.

"What is this?" she asked curiously. Nikki turned her head sideways and squinted at the bottle.

"I don't know. But it's brown and I am strongly against drinking brown."

Mia laughed and tossed the bottle aside. She suddenly felt better than she had in a very long time. Sitting next to a woman that had experienced the things she had, and whose level of personal guilt was similar to her own, made her feel less alone, less of a fake. She didn't have to hide anything around Nikki.

"You know what I think?" Mia suddenly said. Nikki raised an eyebrow.

"Do I want to know what you think?"

"I think that you have a warped opinion of Japan, Nik. I think it's time we changed that."

"I'm warped?" Nikki asked in disbelief. Laughing, Mia grabbed her friend's hand and drug her up from the bed.

"Come on. We're going out."

* * *

The gymnast gave Cye a very sweet smile as he helped her slide slowly into the large tub full of ice water. Her smile quickly turned to a grimace of pain as the cold water hit her torn and sore muscles.

"Easy," Cye murmured as he braced her body against his side. "Take it slow."

"Slow is for wusses," she muttered, lowering herself deeper into the water. Cye chuckled at her attitude and loosened his hold on her small form. The girl sank up to her waist in the tub and leaned back against the edge, shuddering at the temperature.

"Just for a few minutes," Cye told her, "Then back to heat."

The gymnast nodded and Cye stepped away to give her some space. He had long since learned that an injured athlete wanted help knowing what to do when they were hurt, and then they wanted to be left alone to deal with the pain in their own way. It reminded him of how Ryo used to be after their fights with Talpa. Ryo never appreciated them watching him struggle through the physical pain. Sometimes it was best to just turn your back and let people deal with things as they chose.

Grabbing up a couple towels that someone had left near the wall, Cye headed back through the series of rooms that made up Toyama University's sports physical therapy department. Located near the weight lifting rooms and various gymnasiums, this was where the school's injured athletes came to get bandaged up and rehabilitated enough that they could get back out into competition. A soccer player sat on a table getting his knee wrapped and he waved as Cye passed by.

"Hey Doc.," he said in a friendly tone and Cye nodded back at him. Cye wasn't a doctor, not anywhere close, but he had spent so much time working side by side with the actual doctors of the department that the athletes had started lumping him into the same group. He was well trained and had a natural ability to figure out true sources of pain, making him good at his job. Plus his age and laid back nature made him more approachable then some of the other sports therapists at the facility.

Cye paused in one of the rooms and started filling up a second tub, this one with hot water. The sound of rushing water lulled him into a half doze, and he failed to notice the entry of a second person into the room until that someone grabbed a chair and plopped down right next to him.

"Hey, Cye!" Rowen said brightly, giving him a grin. Cye sighed and steeled himself. He knew that grin and the deviousness that lay behind it.

"Rowen," Cye acknowledged, checking the temperature of the water and adjusting it a little hotter. "What brings you around?" he asked pointedly.

Rowen grinned even bigger and started playing with the water, flicking it with his finger.

"What, a guy can't drop by and see his favorite school nurse?" Rowen did his best to look cute and innocent.

Cye rolled his eyes. "Sports therapist, Rowen. Not nurse. Sports therapist."

The comment wasn't anything new, and neither was his answer, but yet they still seemed to go through this same routine every time Rowen came by. It was as if Rowen thrived on the repetition, the same jokes just as funny to him as the first time they were uttered. Just as expected, Rowen winked outrageously at Cye and nudged him with his elbow.

"Sure, buddy. Whatever you say." Rowen started flicking the water at Cye, getting his shirt wet. Cye counted to ten, then calmly thumped Rowen on the side of the head, as if disciplining a puppy. Rowen gave him a hurt look and rubbed his head.

"So what do you want?" Cye asked.

Rowen shrugged and slouched down into his chair. "I was bored and I wanted someone to talk to. Hey, do you want to go get coffee?" he asked suddenly.

"Oh no," Cye replied adamantly. "I know enough of your coffee experiences with Sage to know better than that. Why don't you find him?"

"I tried, he must have his phone on silent again," Rowen scowled. "Sometimes I think he does it just to irritate me."

Cye did his best not to laugh out loud. He knew for a fact that Sage did it just to irritate Rowen. Sage always checked his phone regularly, but this way he could give Rowen a wide eyed innocent look and say 'Gee, Rowen, my phone was on silent! I never knew you called over and over again for three hours straight.' Yet what drove Cye nuts seemed to only amuse Sage, and the blonde man was quite content dealing with Rowen on a daily basis. Sage actually liked Rowen's antics.

"Plus I have to teach a lab class soon," Rowen continued. He looked around the room. "You know, this doesn't really seem like a very interesting job, Cye. Why don't you do something more exciting? Like one of those coastal rescue jobs where you jump out of helicopters and swim people to safety? It seems more your style."

Cye snorted in amusement. "My style, huh? Or maybe I could be a lifeguard the rest of my life or maybe a marine biologist," he said flippantly.

"Sounds about right," Rowen nodded. "I was thinking about changing my career to becoming an astronomer or maybe a weatherman."

"That's wonderful, Rowen!" Cye said in mock excitement, playing along. "I heard Kento's really into botany and rock quarries these days."

"Ryo lost that job with the National Forest and Wildlife Department. Something about him failing to prevent forest fires…" Rowen murmured. Cye laughed out loud this time, shaking his head as he turned off the hot water.

"Um…am I interrupting anything?" a female voice asked. It was the gymnast, and she looked very cold as she stood shivering in the hall.

"Oh no, come on in," Cye motioned for her to get into the water as Rowen stood up and politely left the room. It took Cye a minute to help the girl into this tub, her short stature and sore muscles not aiding her movements. After he had gotten her settled, Cye joined Rowen out in the hall. The blue-haired man raised one eyebrow at Cye, a small smirk on his face.

"I retract the not interesting statement," Rowen told him. Cye rolled his eyes and led Rowen out towards one of the workout rooms. It wasn't often that Rowen came around Cye's work, but when he did it was nearly impossible to get rid of him until Rowen was ready to go. But at one point Cye had discovered that soundly beating Rowen in several games of table tennis was a pretty good way of making sure Cye and his work lost their appeal.

It had become their pattern: Rowen shows up, they go back and forth for a while, they play table tennis, then Rowen leaves. Maybe that was how Sage had gotten sucked into the whole coffee routine, and Cye had to admit that the banter during his and Rowen's games could be amusing. Darn Rowen and his way of sucking you into his repetitions!

As they set up the table and bounced for who got to lead off, Rowen started chuckling to himself.

"You know, I just can't think of a good cliché for Sage. Nothing seems to work. Light doesn't really have a job."

"Hmm…," Cye thought about it, and won the bounce. He served the ball and Rowen smacked it back to him easily. "Light bulbs? No. Lightning? No…that really is a tough one, isn't it? I never though of Sage doing anything but work at the dojo."

"I got it!" Rowen suddenly crowed in delight. "It's perfect! Sage, the human Tiki torch. Just turn him on…"

"And the bugs are gone!" Cye finished, laughing.

"Can you imagine, Cye? There's some poor girl and Sage gets turned on, then POOF! He starts to glow and smells like insect spray?"

Cye was dying as he tried to hit the ball back to Rowen .

"Sage…" Cye snorted as he laughed. "Sage gets turned on…"

"What about me getting turned on?" a quiet and not very amused voice asked from the doorway. Rowen's paddle missed the ball completely, and he turned to look guiltily at Sage and Robyn in the doorway.

Sage waited quietly of an explanation. But all Rowen did was step forward and made a "Bzt!" sound when he touched Sage's arm with his finger.

Cye started chuckling and then both men lost it, laughing so hard that Rowen had to sit down on the table and Cye had tears in his eyes.

Robyn looked at Sage, her eyes wide in astonishment.

"Sage…are they mocking you?" she asked in shock. No one, not even Ronin Warriors, could be that brave could they?

"Anyway," Sage said pointedly, "Cye, I brought you a Robyn."

He motioned to the redhead next to him who looked the two over.

"Wow, Cye and Rowen in the same place having a good time. I thought I'd never see the day."

"It had to happen sometime," Cye replied as he walked over and gave her a hug. "Same university and all." He pulled back to look at her. "I wasn't expecting you to come over. Any reason why?"

"Well, you never come visit me," Robyn pouted. "I hardly ever see you." She reached up to grab his head in both hands and her voice changed to baby talk. "And I miss this face! It's just SOOO cute!"

She pulled him down to rub noses with him, similar to what she did the first day she returned. And once again, Cye instantly began to squirm and protest.

"Robyn, not here," he whispered, trying not to draw any attention. But some had already noticed and were chuckling at him and wondering who the American looking girl who was fawning all over him.

"Please Robyn, cut it out! I have to work with these people!"

"Fine," Robyn pouted, releasing him. "Heaven forbid I be excited to see you. I just wanted to make sure you were taking care of yourself."

Cye raised an eyebrow, watching her mentally check off every part as being present and accounted for.

"You're too thin," she informed him. "You're going to be giving Rowen a run for his money soon. Make sure you eat right. Really, you of all people..."

She shook her head at him before moving past to give Rowen a hug.

"Does she make anyone else feel like they're five?" Cye wondered out loud.

"Nope, can't say that she does," Rowen replied, his hands traveling lower to grope her butt.

Robyn instantly slapped his hand away before he got too far.

"Quick on the draw as always, I see," Rowen lamented, rubbing his now red hand.

"Behave, Rowen," Sage said, giving his friend a disapproving look. But the mischievous twinkle in the blue haired man's eyes was nice to see. Maybe Rowen was finally starting to pull out of the self-absorbed funk he'd buried himself in.

Cye walked back over to Rowen and thumped him once more on the head, and Rowen actually managed to look slightly more offended than Robyn.

"Hey, enough of the thumping people!" Rowen complained, gingerly rubbing his skull. "This is my money maker right here. Don't damage the goods!"

"I didn't realize Rowen had any goods," Sage murmured from across the room, making Cye snicker.

"At least none that can be seen easily," Cye agreed, grinning at an even more offended Rowen.

"Hey!" Rowen protested. "I have just as…_good_ of goods as any man in this room!"

"Sure, Ro," Sage said in a placating voice. "I'm sure you do."

The effect was perfect. Rowen started sputtering indignantly, especially in the face of Cye's outright laughter. Robyn slipped her arm through Cye's and leaned against him.

"Do you boys want to explain to me what you're talking about?" she asked innocently. All three went red and even Sage managed to look embarrassed. Then Rowen's eyes once again began twinkling.

"Well Robyn, you see every man has his own specific shape and size of---"

Whatever he said after that Robyn couldn't hear, because Cye had clamped both of his hands over her ears. She tried to tug the hands away but Cye was too strong. Robyn could however see Rowen's mouth still moving and also that Sage had started choking. The blonde man strode over to Rowen and clamped his own hand over Rowen's mouth. Finally Cye released Robyn's ears.

"Thanks, Sage," Cye told the blonde man. Suddenly Sage recoiled from Rowen, jerking his hand away and looking disgusted.

"That's gross Rowen," he snapped, wiping off his palm on Rowen's shirt. Rowen just shrugged as if to say it was all game.

"Guys…" Cye sighed, "This is where I work. Could we…oh I don't know, act our age?"

That was when Robyn turned to all of them wide eyed. "It comes in different SHAPES?!" she demanded, her nose scrunched.

The rest fell silent. Sage cleared his throat awkwardly.

"Well," Rowen offered happily. "There would only be so many I could show you to compare–"

"That's it!" Cye interrupted, his voice rising a bit. "Out! Out!"

He quickly herded the entire group outside the building where less people knew who he was and it was harder to overhear their conversations.

"You take the fun out of everything, Cye" Rowen sulked. "I was just getting to the good parts."

Cye shook his head, but he had a hard time keeping a straight face and soon all of them were laughing over the conversation they just forced all those people to endure.

"You guys crack me up," Robyn laughed. It was nice to see this, them all laughing and joking around. It rarely happened anymore. And it was interesting to find out where Cye worked. Out of all the things she'd imagined Cye doing, this wasn't one of them. But it sort of made sense. He was helping people and Cye had always been a caretaker type of guy. He had always taken care of her when they were younger. And even when she was older, most of the time she spent with Cye involved him being protective and mothering. In an odd way she kind of missed it. Since she had gotten here she hadn't really spent any alone time with her old friend. Speaking of which…

"Hey Cye! When are we going to hang out?" Robyn asked. "I miss you…"

Cye gave her a smile, a real one that made him look happy. He put an arm around her shoulders and gave her a hug.

"I've missed you too, Robyn," he told her, squeezing her tight.

"Yeah, you better have," Robyn joked.

"Are you free later?' Cye asked, checking his watch. "I get off work pretty soon."

"Nope," Robyn told him. "Sorry! It will have to be another day. I'm hanging out with Sage."

"What are you two doing anyway?" Rowen asked curiously, looking back and forth between the two.

"Sage asked me out," Robyn spoke up, smiling happily. "Like on a DATE date."

Cye raised an accusing eye brow at his blond friend, completely serious. "Oh really."

"It's not a date," Sage insisted.

"He totally wants me," Robyn insisted. "But you guys can get in line. There's plenty of Robyn to go around."

Cye rolled his eyes.

"Hey Robyn, you can call ME later tonight," Rowen winked at her. "Sage can even come if you like it that way."

"Ha, no thanks," Robyn retorted. "I'll just say with Cye and Sage and they can share."

Cye and Sage went stone faced. Rowen's eyes widened like he was about to laugh and then realized it seriously wasn't a joke.

What followed was silence. Dead silence. Dead awkward silence where suddenly no one was looking at each other and the tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Looking around the room, Robyn realized that she had once again said something that she shouldn't. Some unknown thing that had everyone all upset again.

And this was why Sage hesitated at the thought of seeing Cye.

"What?" Robyn asked, face falling. When no one answered, she started to get annoyed. "What the hell? Would someone please give me a list of the things I'm not allowed to say around here? Rowen goes on forever about his...stuff and I can't make an off color joke? What is this?" She turned around to leave but Rowen had jumped up and had intercepted her, wrapping an arm around her waist and giving her a big hug.

"Hold up killer," Rowen said, ruffling her hair and distracting her.

"Hey Rowen! Stop it! Don't try to change the subject on me!" Robyn yelped, trying to fight him off. Rowen continued to attack her hair, all the while giving both Sage and Cye a "look". Cye nodded and walked forward, eyes flickering to Sage. The blonde man was staring resolutely at his shoes. Cye just sighed and slipped behind Robyn, finding her ticklish spots unerringly. Robyn squeaked and tried to defend herself from both sides but to no avail.

"Sage, help me!" she cried piteously, obviously allowing them their subject change.

Shaking himself out of his stupor, Sage walked over and picked Robyn up around the waist, swinging her up over his shoulder as he marched towards the exit. Robyn stuck her tongue out at Rowen and Cye over his back, then mouthed "I'll call you" to Cye. He nodded and waved at her until the pair disappeared through the door. Then Cye seemed to slump wearily. Rowen shook his head.

"Listen, Cye. I'm not really one to talk about dealing with stuff…but you two have to work that out somehow," Rowen said. "You two can't keep this up forever. And it's making things awkward for everyone."

Cye turned to him with a sharp gaze.

"YOU are lecturing me about making things awkward for my friends? I don't think so, Rowen. When you figure out your crap with Nikki, then you can talk to me about this. I have to get back to work." He stomped off angrily back into the building. Rowen watched him go, knowing better than to try and push it any further.

* * *

Nikki had dreaded this place for the last two weeks. She had dreaded the flight, she had dreaded the arrival, and she had dreaded everything that came after. She had half expected to find Rowen waiting for her in the airport, arms crossed and furious. But now, from where she sat perched on her barstool, Nikki was having a hard time remembering just what she had thought was so bad about Japan.

Next to her Mia was laughing hysterically, although Nikki wasn't sure what about. A dark haired young man stood next to them, flirting outrageously with Mia and throwing winks Nikki's way any chance he got. Thus far the evening had been quite fine, and there were empty shot glasses behind them on the bar to prove it.

Yet, when two girls decide to go out for the evening, it eventually falls upon one of them to have the better judgment. So even as Mia continued to laugh and lean on the young man's arm, Nikki decided that she better step in and be a good friend.

"Hey," Nikki said from her stool. No one noticed. "Hey! HEY!" Both Mia and the guy turned to her curiously. Nikki held up her finger and waggled it in front of the guy's face.

"Okay, now listen," Nikki slurred, taking another drink of something brown and very tasty. "I don't know who you are, and for all I know, you might have the bestest best intentions about my friend here." The guy raised an eyebrow in amusement as Nikki leaned farther towards them.

"But as far as I know, you might NOT have the bestest best intentions. Sooo…" Nikki leaned so far forward only a small part of her rear was still safely on her seat.

"Sooo…you need to answer me a few questions, buster." Nikki nodded seriously.

"Ummm, sure. Okay," he replied, still amused. The redhead was hot enough to put up with her crazy drunken friend.

"One! What's your name?"

"Kesuke" he replied, taking a long drink from his beer. "What's next?"

"Okaaay…two! What is your quest?!"

"You've got to be kidding me!" he laughed, recognizing the movie reference. "That's awesome! My quest is to find the holy grail. I think your friend has it hidden somewhere around here."

Mia snorted, not realizing how brazen the man was being. Nikki gave him the evil eye and waggled her finger more vigorously.

"Last one, quest guy…Three! Are you a demon?"

This took him by surprise.

"What? A demon? What are you talking about?"

"You know," Mia cut in, trying to be helpful. "Big, scary, likes to screw with your head?" This only seemed to confuse him more. So she raised her hands and flapped them around in a demon-like fashion, trying to jog his memory.

"Yeah, I don't know what you two are talking about. But no, I'm NOT a demon."

Nikki narrowed her eyes.

"I don't believe him," she whispered to Mia, who's eyes had started to narrow as well. "He seems…fishy."

"Ahhhh…fish demon," Mia acknowledged sadly. Then she hiccupped.

"You two are freaks. I'm out of here," Kesuke said, and he moved away, half disappointed that it hadn't worked out with the redhead and half glad to be away from two women who were obviously not all there.

"Yep. He's was definitely a demon," Mia decided seriously, nodding her head once again as they watched him go. "Good call, Nik." Nikki smiled proudly.

Mia slipped off her barstool and grabbed Nikki's arm.

"Come on," she slurred. "We should probably get home." Nikki stumbled afterwards, and they wove their way outside of the club. Mia set herself to the task of hailing a cab, and Nikki stood slightly off to one side, watching the people mill around her. They were just people, nothing different than the ones that she knew back in the States. Mia had been right, her blurry mind decided. She did have a warped view of this place. It wasn't Japan's fault she had bad memories here. And Mia seemed like she was pushing past everything, so maybe it was time that Nikki did too.

A small taxi skidded to a stop in front of them and Mia opened the door, climbing inside with only a moderate amount of grace. Nikki started to follow, but something stopped her. She looked up, across the top of the taxi and to the other side of the street. Violet eyes locked on hers, partially obscured by blonde hair. Then she blinked and looked away because Mia had grabbed her hand from inside the cab and pulled on it. When she looked back, the blonde hair was gone, lost in the crowd. Shaking her fuzzy head, Nikki allowed herself to be tugged into the car. She slouched into the seat and listened to Mia and the driver talk. Sometime later Nikki remembered crawling under her blankets, trying to recall why she felt so unsettled.

"You're not leaving are you?" she asked Mia in a soft, uncommonly vulnerable voice. The redhead told her no as she stretched out on top of the blankets, wadding a pillow beneath her head. She clicked on the television and curled up near Nikki.

"You sleep with the television on too?" Nikki asked her drowsily. Mia's eyes scanned the illuminated room several times before she finally closed them.

"Always."

* * *

It had been a pleasant evening, and Robyn had decided that in the last several years, Sage had become a much more interesting person. Not that he hadn't been interesting before, but you never got to know anything about him because he was always so quiet and aloof. Sage was still quiet compared to the average individual, but now he seemed more open and more animated, talking about things with a kind of muted enthusiasm that belied his actual feelings about things. He had kept up enough conversation with Robyn during the night that she never felt uncomfortable, and even the silences between topics were nice. Sage never made her feel forced to talk when she didn't have anything to say.

He had taken her to a rather nice restaurant downtown, and Robyn had felt a little guilty about how much everything had cost. She had told him he shouldn't waste it on her and that he should go out and have fun with it instead. But Sage had given her a serious look and had asked her if he looked like the type that had no money because he spent it all having fun. It was the closest thing to a joke she remembered him making and she had laughed in amusement.

But now the evening was winding down and it was about time to go home. They were walking to his car when Sage suddenly stopped and frowned. Robyn paused and followed his gaze. Near she could tell, he was looking at a taxi as it was driving away. But that hardly explained his reaction.

"Hey, what's wrong?" she asked curiously. Sage didn't reply for so long that Robyn didn't think he would respond. Instead of answering her question, he asked one instead.

"Robyn, do you think it's okay to keep something from someone if you think it's for the best?" Sage asked in a quiet, serious voice. Robyn raised an eyebrow as she thought about it.

"I think it depends on the situation," she replied slowly. "What kind of thing do you mean?"

It was a baby nudge, borderline prying, but Sage had given her this opening. She hadn't asked. Sage's brow furrowed as he formulated his response.

"Like if you know something that a friend would want to know, but if you told them, they would only use it to hurt themselves further. Is it wrong to try to protect them from that?"

Robyn gaped at him. "Sage, are you cheating on me?"

For a moment, Sage gaped back. "What? No! I'm not cheating on you. It's not like THAT! I mean, I can't be cheating, there's nothing to cheat--I--" He clamped his mouth shut and glared at her.

Robyn laughed at his frown, grabbing his arm and pushing him a bit so he was rocking slightly back and forth. "Hee hee, you're so funny, Sage."

He stayed there a moment longer, arms folded, the very picture of indignation. "I'm glad you find this so funny," he pouted.

Robyn giggled some more. "You're just so serious all the time. You're begging to be teased. Now tell me again about this friend of yours."

Sage eyed her warily, looking hesitant. He wasn't going to tell her if she was going to laugh at him again.

"Come on," Robyn insisted. "I want to know. You know something that this friend of yours would want to know, right? But you think telling this person would not be good for him slash her?"

"Him," Sage clarified. "And I worry about what he would do if he knew."

"So we're talking about either Ryo, Cye, Kento or Rowen," Robyn surmised.

Sage looked guilty. "What makes you believe that?"

Robyn threw him a look. "Come on, who else could it be? So you know something that one of these guys would really like to know, but you're afraid it will hurt them? Or you're afraid they would hurt themselves with this information? Like physically hurt themselves or what?"

"Well, no, not physically." Sage insisted. "I just don't want him to do something stupid that he'll really regret later."

Robyn grinned knowingly. "So, we're talking about Rowen."

Sage sighed. Rowen was right, Robyn was going to find out anyway. And Cye was right, they sucked at keeping secrets.

Robyn chewed on her lip in thought as they approached his car and he hit the unlock button on his key ring, making the vehicle chirp. He opened the door for her to get in and then closed it. As he settled into the driver's seat and started the engine, he looked genuinely troubled. Robyn gave him a sympathetic look.

"Hey, don't beat yourself up over it, okay?" Robyn said gently. "As long as I've known you you've been really good at making decisions. Give yourself some time to think it over. I'm sure you'll do the right thing."

"I should tell him. He'll hate me if I don't." Sage resting his forehead on the steering wheel with a sigh. "But he is SO bad at making decisions!" Sage growled and messed up his hair a bit. It was the most animated Robyn had ever seen him. "Arg! He drives me nuts sometimes!"

"You can only make so many bad decisions before you accidentally make a good one," Robyn told him. "Sometimes being a friend means you have to let them fall so they can learn for themselves. Just be there for them if they need a hand back up."

That seemed to satisfy Sage and the subject was dropped. He pulled out and they started on the way to Robyn's house.

"I hope that wasn't the reason you dropped by to see me, so you could just ask me that," Robyn said out of the blue while she watched out the window.

"No, of course not," Sage replied instantly, slipping more back into the stoic, stiff Sage she knew. His real personality was in there somewhere and she had caught a glimpse of it, but it was gone again, like a fleeting humming bird. Only coming and going as it suited him and no one else.

"So, you're saying you just dropped by because you missed my smiling face?" Robyn drawled.

"And your sarcastic whit," Sage said with a slight smile.

"Ha ha," was Robyn's sardonic response. "Either way, thanks for taking me out. It was nice."

"You're welcome," Sage replied, formal as always.

Robyn smirked at him. "You paid. It was so a date."

Sage managed to give her a sideways glare as he pulled up in front of her complex. He killed the engine and got out. Robyn didn't move from her seat. She stared out the window at the building as if it were some foreboding presence hulking over her. Her gaze only broke when Sage stepped in the way, blocking her view from the building. He opened her door and Robyn hesitated for a moment before stepping out.

They climbed the stairs to her apartment and by the time they reached the door, Sage was certain he hadn't mistaken Robyn's earlier hesitance. The fact that she was staring at her door with a heavy sigh was a dead giveaway.

"Well, thanks again for tonight," Robyn turned and smiled as she fished for her keys. "It was nice seeing you and I had fun."

Sage gave a tight smile and she smiled at him. And they smiled at each other. And they stood there.

"Is there...anything else?" Sage pressed, wondering what she was lagging for.

Robyn shook her head. "No, no there isn't," she said with a sigh.

Robyn unlocked her door and took a step inside. Sage, satisfied she would make it in from there all right, turned to go. He took two steps and felt a hand grab the back of his shirt. He paused in mid stride and heard Robyn's door swing shut without anyone there to catch it. Confused, the blonde turned to see that Robyn had stumbled after him and had her fist tightly enclosed in his shirt material. Her face was a mask of surprise, eyes wide. As if she wasn't sure why she did it herself.

Sage was about to open his mouth to ask why when a breeze stirred up. It came out of nowhere and seemed almost aimed at them. It wasn't strong, but it was ice cold and it made the hairs on the back of Sage's neck stand up. His eyes went wide as well at the feeling. Had Robyn known that chill was coming before he even sensed it himself?

Robyn instantly pulled away as if he had shocked her. "Sorry!" she squeaked. "I don't know why I did that."

The breeze died instantly, but the cold remained. Sage didn't say a word, but he was unsettled about his surroundings now. What was that feeling just now? It was restless, like the first time Sage had visited her apartment. But there was something else to it now; something cold that put him a bit on edge. Robyn turned around, obviously embarrassed.

"Forget I did that, I'm just being jumpy. I'll be going now. Thanks for walking me to my door, Sage." She reached for the doorknob, but a larger hand got it first. Sage stood looming over her, looking calm with a hint of understanding in his eyes.

"Do you want me to stay for a while?" he asked softly.

Robyn stared at his hand and then looked up at him, smiling with a pained expression. It was obvious it was trampling on her pride to ask this. "If you don't mind," she said quietly. "Maybe a bit?"

Sage opened the door and then followed her in the house. Robyn offered him a seat on the couch and a drink. They had just ate so Sage declined the drink, but took the seat. Robyn tossed off her jacket and joined him on the couch. It was the middle of summer, but Robyn still carried a jacket every where. Mostly for places indoors where the air conditioning was up too high. All of the Ronins were convinced she had no body circulation whatsoever.

"I'm sorry to ask you for this," Robyn said quietly. She sat with her elbow on her knee and her chin in her palm, not looking at Sage or anything in particular. "It's just that some weird things have been happening lately. Makes me a little uneasy."

Sage watched her quietly. She wasn't as restless and fidgety as she used to be. She seemed a bit more comfortable now. More comfortable in her own body, how she carried herself, how she sat in the silences. Or maybe she was just tired. Sage hadn't really gotten a good look until then, but she looked a bit worn, too. Maybe it had been a long day for her.

Robyn then suddenly chuckled. "Ryo said I apologize too much."

"He's usually right," Sage confirmed. He tipped his head. "What do you mean by weird things happening?"

Robyn shrugged. "Nothing, just things. You know, being a single woman living alone. You hear someone walking down the hall or a sound at the window and you get paranoid. I'm just silly like that. I don't know if you heard, but my power went out last night and I freaked out and called Ryo over." Robyn groaned into her hands as she remembered it. "Oh, I feel so dumb," she lamented, rubbing her face tiredly. "You can go home, Sage. I'm just being stupid."

Sage didn't move. "I'm staying as long as you need me to stay," he informed her.

Robyn gave him a pained look. "You're just shoving this back in my face now, aren't you?"

"In fact, maybe I should stay the night. Sounds like you need the protection with perverts at your window all the time." There was a certain tone of victory in Sage's voice and Robyn glared at him.

"Fine, do you what you want," she mumbled. "I'm getting ready for bed."

When Robyn retreated to her room, Sage made his way to the single bathroom in the apartment to freshen up. He leaned over the counter, looking at himself in the mirror. He didn't tell Robyn, but part of his reason for being so easy to offer overnight protection was that he just didn't want to go home. Especially not after that "talk" he had with his Grandfather that morning. Being cornered and practically forced into marriage on the spot was not his idea of a good chat.

Sage sighed as he looked at his tired face in the mirror. Had it really been just that morning? It seemed like it had been a very long day. With a sigh, Sage turned on the water and splashed a bit on his face. He repeated the action several times, letting the sound of the running water drown out everything for a moment.

"_The window..."_

It was but a whisper. At least, Sage thought he heard a whisper. He lifted his head and looked around. The bathroom door was still shut and he was the only one in it. Sage turned off the water and listened to the stillness. Nothing. As an experiment, he turned the water back on and listened again, wondering if the noise had come from the pipes. But nothing sounded like the voice he thought he heard earlier. Quickly, Sage dried his face and opened the bathroom door. The hairs on his neck were standing up again. It felt like something was stirring.

The door right across from him flung open and Robyn almost ran into him as she stepped out of her room.

"Oh there you are," she said, trying not to sound too surprised to find him right outside her door. She was in her pajamas now and had a pillow and blanket in her arms.

"Here you go. The couch is actually pretty comfy. I've fallen asleep on it a few times. Might be a bit small for you, but.."

"It's fine," Sage replied, taking the items offered. He turned down the hall and Robyn trailed after him. She lingered in the hallway as Sage seated himself on the couch and proceeded to arrange things as he liked.

"Is there anything else you need before I turn in?"

"No, thank you," Sage returned politely. "I'm fine."

"Well, good night then," Robyn lingered.

"Good night, Robyn."

Robyn turned to go back to her room, then glanced behind her again at the blonde head poking over the back of the couch. She paused to wrestle with something in her head and then spun around. Quickly she walked back to the couch and leaned over the back, throwing both arms around Sage's shoulders and squeezing him tight. Though she couldn't see it, Sage's expression drifted from surprise to a light smile. Then she let him go and quickly retreated to her bedroom.

* * *

Sage muttered in his sleep, tossing and turning on the couch. The blanket was damp with sweat as he struggled with his own mind's demons. But even a mind at sleep knows when something has changed. In the middle of slipping further into his nightmare, Sage sat up wide awake.

There was a child standing at the arm of the couch, watching him. His face was pale and green blue and shrunken in, making his black eyes stand out even more. His hair was mussed and his clothes looked tattered and centuries old; dripping wet. And the boy just stood there, watching him. Then the child glanced once in the direction of the hall.

Sage bolted up into a sitting position and the boy vanished before his eyes. For a moment, Sage sat there with wide eyes, shivering and panting. Then he remembered where he was and lurched to his feet, barely noticing how cold the apartment had become, and ran to Robyn's bedroom. The door was open a crack, despite the fact that he had heard her shut it when she went to bed. Sage slipped inside the icy room. Robyn was lying in bed, covers pulled up to her chin, and she was still asleep. There was a window next to her bed, wide open with a chilled breeze blowing in.

Sage strode to the window and looked down. Outside there was nothing, just the sleeping city of Toyama. There was nothing there. Grabbing the window firmly with both hands, Sage closed it tightly and locked it shut.

"What are you doing?"

Sage jumped a bit at the voice until he realized it was Robyn's. He turned to see her propped up on one elbow and watching him. Sage just stood there. His mind was still whirling; his heart still racing like it would never stop.

Robyn regarded his current state calmly. "You saw him, didn't you?"

Surprised at such a question, it took a moment for Sage to answer. And even then, all he could do was nod his head.

"Sorry," Robyn said softly. "I should have mentioned him. It figures you of all people would see him if you stayed here long enough. He's harmless, though. Just startles you sometimes. However, if it makes you feel better, you can sleep in here."

Sage stood there for a while more and then left the room. Robyn momentarily thought she saw the last of him for the night. But then Sage came back in with his pillow and blanket. He shut the door behind him and laid himself down on the floor next to Robyn's bed, facing the door.

"Aww... you don't want to share a bed with me?" Robyn pouted. "Come on, I'll keep you safe." She reached out and ran a cold finger over the shell of his ear.

Sage jumped an inch off the ground. "Stop it!" He barked as he swatted at her.

Robyn chuckled. "Fine, I didn't want you in my bed anyway. You're too ugly."

Sage rolled over to stare at her, but Robyn had already flipped over, her back now to him. Then he smiled a bit to himself. He knew what Robyn was doing and he appreciated it. The mood had been lightened and Sage didn't feel nearly as startled or confused. He still had a lot of questions, but they could wait until morning.

Sighing, Sage lay back down. He kept his eyes open for a while longer, glancing around the room and then at the door, wondering if he would see anything else. But slowly, sleep got a hold of him again and he surrendered to it.

However, just like any other night, his nightmares took hold of him again. As always, he dreamed of dark worlds inhabited by unspeakable creatures and the dead, gaping body of one he cared about trapped within it. But this time, with it were also visions of small boys with endless, black eyes and windows yawning open that never revealed anything.

And, as the two slept, a shadow loomed in the window, watching them silently.


	5. Chapter 5

**The Blinding Mask**

Chapter Five

"Here, I had this made for you."

Robyn stared at the gift Ryo presented dubiously.

"What would I need a key for?"

Ryo shrugged, but his conversation with Sage was still fresh in his head. Sage had showed up at his apartment one night, expressing some concerns about Robyn. He didn't give any specific details, but he insisted Robyn sometimes didn't feel safe at her apartment. He also expressed his opinion that Ryo was the best candidate to inform of this since he already spent so much time with her and the blonde hoped maybe there was something Ryo could do about it.

Ryo was definitely wanting to do something about it. Not only because Robyn was his friend and he wanted her to feel safe. But for some reason, knowing Sage had been the one staying over at her house when she needed someone did not sit well with Ryo. He wasn't sure why; could not put his finger on it, but he didn't like the idea one bit and was going to do whatever he could to make sure it didn't happen again.

"It's just in case," he said out loud. "You know, if you get scared or anything, you can come over. Even if I'm not home, you can just let yourself in."

Robyn's expression remained the same. "I'm not comfortable just walking into your place when you're not home, Ryo," she informed him.

"I won't mind, I swear."

"No, I don't want it, Ryo. If I need you, I'll call you."

"Please take it. I'll feel better if you do."

"Feel better about what? Have you been talking to Sage?"

"That's not the point. The point is that I want you to feel safe."

"I do feel safe. But giving a key... that's just kind of weird, Ryo. Seriously, I don't know you THAT well."

"I'm not joking Robyn, just take it."

"No."

"Stop being a pain! Just take it!"

"I don't want it!"

"I made it for you!"

"Too bad, I still don't want it!"

"Robyn just take the stupid key!"

"No! You can't just come in here and tell me what to do! I don't have to report to you 24/7! You don't even ask me first! You just come in here and assume that-- Mph!"

His mouth was suddenly on hers. It wasn't forceful or gentle and one could hardly call it a kiss. It was just his mouth over hers and there was a moment of silence. Ryo pulled away, looking at her in surprise. Robyn's expression was blank as if she had no idea what just happened to her. Ryo wasn't sure just what happened either. The kiss didn't mean anything, he just wanted her to shut up.

"Just take the key," he said evenly.

Still startled, Robyn's hand weakly floated up. Ryo grabbed it and slapped the key on her palm with finality. This probably wasn't what Kento meant when he told Ryo to talk to Robyn a bit differently to get her to listen. But it worked so Ryo would take it.

* * *

Rowen panted, sweat beading off his face and running down to his low neck line. Sage was doing very much the same thing as they faced off against each other. Both were dressed in white practice gis at the Date family dojo. It was something they used to do all the time when they were younger. Rowen couldn't remember the last time he went and the stitch in his side was proving that fact. 

"You're slower," Sage rasped at him, wiping his brow.

"Still fast enough to keep you on your toes," Rowen smirked back, not letting the blonde forget he was just as tired.

"We'll see," Sage growled. He attacked, thrusting forward with one arm, palm up. Rowen blocked the arm with his own, but Sage was already striking on the other side. Rowen blocked that as well which launched into a barrage of fancy hand work; all close combat. Finally, Sage managed to land a chop to Rowen's ribs.

Rowen grunted at the pain.

"See?" Sage smirked. "You used to be like the wind."

"I'm still like the wind," Rowen growled, sweeping his friend with his foot.

He managed to lightly catch Sage in the ankle, but the blonde back flipped, springing off one hand and landed a few feet away unharmed. Rowen stared at him.

"I'm surprised you can still do one of those. How old are you now, Sage?"

The blonde grinned. "Older than you and still better."

Rowen crouched like he was going to attack again, then loosened his stance and chuckled. The first sound of genuine laughter Sage had heard from his best friend in he didn't know how long.

"Ha, ha. That's funny. You want to go again so I can prove you wrong?"

"Any time," Sage smiled back.

The two were farther apart now, meaning one would have to advance to start the attack.

Rowen grinned wider. It was his favorite opening. He ran towards Sage who dropped his stance and stood tall in the face of Rowen's attack. He knew what was coming. Rowen used to always do this. The blue haired man leapt forward in a flying kick and Sage blocked it with the back of his fist as he always did. Then the fight was on again.

"Just like the old days, huh?" Rowen chatted between blows and kicks.

"More or less," Sage replied as he dodged an attack and, grabbing Rowen's arm, flipped his friend over his head. Rowen made a sound of surprise, but quickly righted himself in the air and landed neatly on his feet.

"You're still just as easy to throw around," Sage smirked. "Why don't you go eat a burger or something?"

"Har har," Rowen shot back sarcastically, though he was grinning. "Seriously though, doesn't it feel that way a bit? I mean, we even have Robyn back, for a while anyway. This summer's going to be great. I can feel it."

Sage took his turn to attack first and the fray of punches and blocks began again.

"So I'm assuming from the other day you and Robyn are back in good standing."

"Of course," Rowen insisted as he threw another kick. "She loves me. She can't stay mad at this face for too long."

Sage made a punch for that face which Rowen almost didn't dodge in time.

"Hey watch it!" Rowen gasped; then smirked. "A little jealous, are we?"

Sage spun around, making a chop for Rowen's side while facing backwards and then spun back around to swing the side of his hand at Rowen's neck.

"Hardly."

Rowen blocked without any problems. Sage was easier to counter when he got fancier in his moves. He liked to do them to improve his form and not necessarily land any blows on his opponent.

"Speaking of which, how did your date with Robyn go?"

"It wasn't a date!" Sage automatically shot back.

"Oh really?" Rowen challenged with a knowing smirk. "So it's not a date when the girl invites you up and you stay the night?"

Sage froze, his mouth open in indignation.

"I did NOT–"

"CLOTHES LINE!"

The second Sage's guard was down, Rowen stuck out his long arm and ran forward. He caught Sage right under the chin and swept him off his feet. Sage might have cared about form, but Rowen sure didn't.

The blonde fell on his back with a grunt, the wind knocked out of him. Luckily the practice mats were soft. But he was still seeing stars for a while. And then he saw Rowen's smug, annoying face hovering over him.

"I hate it when you do that," Sage rasped, rubbing his neck.

"Your fault for letting your guard down," Rowen laughed. Then his face turned into serious mockery. "A warrior must be ready at all times for the enemy may use any kind of trickery to lower your guard. And it only takes one second for the wall to crumble."

Sage smirked as he sat up. "Did I say that?"

Rowen plopped himself down next to him, legs crossed. "More specifically, your grandfather said it, and his father before him and his father before him and..."

Sage cuffed him lightly on the side of the head.

"So seriously, everything is going fine?" Sage clarified, sounding almost like he couldn't believe it himself.

Rowen shrugged. "So far. Aside from Ryo's usual weirdness. He wants us to watch out for Robyn at all times, but we can't go up to her place or anything like that. But he can have her sleep over at his place when her power is out. Seriously, what does he want?"

Sage shook his head. "I have stopped trying to figure out how Ryo thinks." Then he paused. "This is really sad how much we know each other's business."

Rowen laughed. "Yeah, we're a bunch of gossiping middle-aged house wives. But I think we've been doing good so far with keeping a tight lid on everything else. We just need to get you and Cye to stop freaking out every time Robyn says something off color."

Sage winced as he remembered when they were at Cye's work. He put himself in Robyn's shoes and thought about how odd their reactions must have been to her.

"It was a bit weird, wasn't it?" Sage asked.

"A bit," Rowen confirmed. "I can't cover for you forever man."

Sage smirked ironically at his friend. For all he had done for Rowen, that should have been his line. But Rowen was just grinning back as if he already knew this. Sage had to chuckle. He could see what was going on now. This was Rowen's new game; keep the information away from Robyn. This was how Rowen always was. He had to have something with a goal, a finish line and rules for him to do. He always had to turn everything into a contest. In this case, if Robyn made it back to America without knowing about them, then they won.

Sage accepted this. It was good for him to put his focus on something new. Even if it was only for a few months, he welcomed this distraction for Rowen. Maybe when it was over, Rowen would finally remember how it was before this whole mess happened and he could move on with his life. The trick was keeping his attention on other things and not...

Sage thought back to that night and what he saw. Nikki was there. She was in Japan; in the city. If Rowen knew that, he might start spiraling backwards again. Maybe if she had shown up later, he might have healed enough to take it. But now, Sage wasn't so sure. He had been turning this decision over and over in his head. Sage wanted to tell Rowen. He did not relish keeping secrets from his friend. But if he did, would he lose this person sitting in front of him? Would these kinds of times they used to have, smiling and laughing, be gone for good because of this one bit of information he knew?

"So Rowen, are you pretty happy right now?" Sage asked out of the blue.

Rowen shrugged casually, not minding the randomness of the question. "Sure, why not? Everything has been going well so far. The only thing I worry about is what's bothering you."

Sage looked guilty. Even without any empathy powers, Rowen could tell when something was on his mind a mile away. Now he sat there, looking expectant and waiting for Sage to tell him what it was. There was no getting out of it now. Rowen had made his decision for him. Sage knew how Strata was. Once he knew Sage had something on his mind, he could sit there all day waiting to hear it.

"Okay," Sage said with a sigh. "I saw something a few nights ago that I thought maybe I should tell you. But I've been hesitant about it because well... before you were a pain in the ass. And now you've been back to your old self and..."

"Oh just tell me," Rowen shot out. "It can't be that bad. Nothing's going to make me angry, I'm having too good of a day. I know you had me come out here to tell me this so you might as well say it."

"Okay," Sage surrendered. "But I want you to remain calm about this, okay?"

"I'm calm Sage, look. I'm clam. Just tell me."

"No Rowen, seriously. I need you to remain calm because what I'm going to tell you may be upsetting."

"Seriously, Sage, I'm calm. Just spit it out."

"Okay, this is hard to say though. I'm trying to figure out how–"

"Come on Sage! Don't pussyfoot all day! Tell me!" Rowen demanded, bristling a little with impatience. Why was his friend being so stupid all of a sudden?

Sage did not like that tone at all. "No Rowen, I need you to calm down. Stay calm, okay? Because this is–"

"Okay, okay. I'm calm, look." Rowen took a deep breath. "See? I'm still calm."

"Good. I need you to stay rational and think this through. I know it's going to be tempting to act as soon as you hear this but–"

"Damn it, Sage! Are you trying to piss me off?"

"Now Rowen, I need you to back off a bit. Remain calm–"

"I AM CALM!!" Rowen launched himself at Sage and the two engaged in a wordless tussle, fighting for dominance. Sage had muscle and a heavier body on his side. But Rowen, fueled by his annoyance with his friend, ended up sitting on Sage's back, trapping the blonde in a headlock.

"Tell me, damn you!" Rowen barked.

"Alright!" Sage choked, trying to get air in his windpipe. "It's Nikki! I saw her in town that night I was out with Robyn."

Rowen released his hold and Sage gasped for air while Rowen remained sitting on his back.

"Now Rowen," Sage counseled, trying to look behind him to see his friend's expression. "We talked about this. Think about this for a minute. Don't do anything rash. Don't–"

Sage hardly knew Rowen was gone. He disappeared like a gust of wind, the door of the dojo banging behind him as he left. Sage sat up and wondered if he had really done the right thing.

* * *

At work, Robyn sighed as she hung a single key in front of her face, ignoring the computer screen before her. She thought back to that conversation as she had a hundred times already. What exactly did it mean? With other guys, sure, she could guess what they were up to. But this was Ryo and Ryo functioned on motives that most ordinary people did not. He was usually pretty easy to read, but when he did something unexpected like that, it was hard to figure out what he was trying to do. 

The way he looked at her and the key. Why did he give her a key? He was always home. She could get in there whenever she wanted, key or not. And he kissed her. Why the hell did he do that?

The key was mesmerizing as it shimmered in front of her, twisting mysteriously. It seemed to be taunting her with its cryptic swaying, daring her to guess at its existence.

So entranced by her conundrum, Robyn didn't notice there was someone standing in the doorway.

"Hey, working hard or hardly working?" asked a playful voice.

Robyn looked over and her face lit up.

"CYE!" she cried, throwing herself at the startled young man.

The key was momentarily forgotten.

* * *

"Yep, no problem." Mia laughed and nodded her head as she listened to the voice on the other end of the phone. "Hey, it wasn't my fault that you decided to start singing! That was all on you. Suuuure. Okay, I'll see you later. Yeah right! No, no more singing. Okay, I'll call you when I leave work. Bye, Nik." 

Mia snapped her phone shut and chuckled. The singing had most definitely not been her idea. As far as she could remember, which wasn't very far, Nikki had started singing entirely of her own accord. Of course Masahiro hadn't been much help, dragging the brunette up on the karaoke stage so he wouldn't be alone. But it had made for a hell of a good time. Mia couldn't help the smile that was on her face, despite the mild hangover she had. She had to admit that having Nikki around the last week had been really good for her. They had a lot of fun…almost too much fun. But they were allowed to let loose every once in a while, weren't they?

It was starting to look like a good day and Mia had a happy bob in her step as she walked down the hallway towards her office. She had a coffee pot in there that was going to be kept on all day long in preparation for the evening that was to come. Tonight Nikki and Mia were going dancing and it promised to be a late one. Nikki was giving her big presentation this afternoon and she wanted to celebrate getting through it in style. Mia had wanted to go but they had an important meeting already scheduled that overlapped and there was nothing she could do about it. But Mia definitely could help with the after partying.

It was a beautiful day. The sun was shining. The people in the office looked happy. She was happy. Life was good. And Rowen was coming down the hall from the opposite direction, straight towards Mia's office.

_Oh shit._

He knew. He had to know. That gate in his step couldn't be mistaken for anything else. She couldn't get out of this by acting nonchalant and pretending she had no idea what was going on. Rowen knew that she knew and Mia could tell by the way he paused in the hall to eye her down he wasn't going to take any excuses from her.

Not that Mia was afraid Rowen would do anything to harm her, but she was still afraid and did not want this confrontation at all. The two looked at each other. Mia was sure she was doing a great 'deer caught in headlights' impression. Her mind raced over all possible reactions and settled on one.

They both realized what she was going to do the second she did it. Mia gave herself away by her eyes flickering to her door. Then, as one, both made a break for her office. Mia sprinted across the hall, dodging a coworker, and leapt through her door. She spun and slammed it shut with all her might, but the toe of a shoe caught it just in time. Then fingers inched their way around the door and pressed open. Mia caught the door with her own shoe to help hold it in place, but Rowen already had his head in.

"Mia!" Rowen barked. "Let me in! I have to talk to you. I–Mmph!"

He was cut off by a hand palming his face, trying to press it back through the doorway.

"Sorry Rowen," Mia shot back. "I'm too busy. But we can talk later, okay!"

The door swung towards her as Rowen pulled his face away put his shoulder into it. Mia dug both feet in and pushed back with all her strength, trying to hold it closed.

"Mia! I need to talk to you! I know Nikki's in town. I need to know where she's at. Let me in!"

Mia refused to give an inch and braced her full weight against the door. "What she does is none of your business, Rowen! She didn't come out here for you. She's MY friend and I'm not going to throw her to the wolves just because you want to "talk" with her!"

To emphasize her point, Mia took off one of her shoes and slapped it down on the fingers clutching the door. Rowen let out an "Ouch!" and removed his hand, but his foot was still in the doorway, preventing her from closing it. A second later, he pressed his shoulder into the door again, but Mia still held fast.

"Mia! Just tell me where she is! That's all I want to know! Stop acting so childish!"

"Make me! You're the one who needs to grow up!"

"MIA!" Rowen roared, wedging his foot further in the door. "I know you know where Nikki is, so just tell me…Ouch!!! Stop stamping on my foot! You're wearing heels!"

"Get your foot out of my door! I'm going to call security!"

At Mia's desk, a few feet away from the fray, sat Masahiro. He had seen the entire thing and was still watching with a kind of detached curiosity. He seemed less than alarmed that this frantic man was trying to break into Mia's office and was content just to sit on the sidelines and observe.

"Nikki?" he repeated. "Isn't that the name of that American chick we hung out with last night? The one that came out for that convention?"

All yelling and pushing on Rowen's end stopped. Mia paused as well, frozen. In a split second, Rowen was gone and Mia threw open her door to yell down the hall.

"Rowen! Come back! ROWEN!"

But he was already gone. If Rowen managed to figure out where Nikki was, there would be no time to save her. By now the convention had started and Nikki's cell phone would be off so she had no way to call her. She would also be impossible to find if Mia went there herself.

Clenching her fists, Mia slowly turned around, casting a dark, dangerous glare in Masahiro's direction.

The young lawyer just blinked at her.

"What?"

* * *

Robyn and Cye walked along the beach; her arm slipped through his. She walked close to him, giving off the illusion to passersby that they were a romantic couple. Cye knew what it looked like, but he didn't care too much. He knew why Robyn was being like that. 

"I'm so glad you came to visit me Cye," Robyn cooed as she leaned her cheek against his arm. "I've missed you."

"I can tell," Cye chuckled.

"Even coming back here, I still miss you. I hardly get to see you," Robyn pouted.

"Yeah, I know. Sorry about that. I've just been so busy and..." Cye trailed off there, unwilling to go into his personal feelings. Though he cared about Robyn very much, it was hard to be around her. He wanted so much to tell her things. He wanted her to know what he was feeling. But they had all decided not to so, instead, he turned to her with a smirk.

"Are you planning to keep that arm all day or what?"

"Yes," Robyn replied, clutching it tighter. "This is going to have to last me a long time. Who knows when I'll be able to come back here again."

"I see," said Cye knowingly. "Well in that case..."

He pulled his arm from her and then put it around Robyn's shoulders, pulling her in closer. Robyn gave a sound of delight and hugged him with both arms around his torso. It made it a bit harder to walk with Cye practically dragging her with him, but he didn't mind.

"My breath of fresh air," Robyn grinned as she breathed in his scent. "You have no idea how much I've seen of Kento and Ryo lately." Her voice lowered to a bored drawl as she mentioned their names.

Cye grinned. "I heard you were giving Ryo a hard time for a while."

"Yeah," Robyn confirmed a bit guiltily. "I couldn't help it. He was driving me nuts at first. He wanted to walk me to and from work every day AND if I happened to run any errands. And going out at night wasn't even an option.

"I told him it wasn't necessary, but he kept insisting so I started ditching work out the back and leaving early in the morning before he could get to my place."

"I know," Cye laughed. "He would always call and complain to me when you did that. He wanted me to make you listen to him. I told him he was asking the impossible."

Robyn laughed with him. "Ryo is so funny. He's sweet but he has no sense of moderation."

"That's for sure." Cye's mind went back to all the battles where Ryo practically ran himself into the ground because he didn't know when it was time to back off and regroup.

"We've worked on it, though," Robyn continued. "He can walk me home twice a week, so now I have an opportunity to actually look forward to his visit. The other days, when I get home, I call his phone and let it ring once so he knows I got home safe. I also promised I would call if I go anywhere at night. But I just don't tell him."

Cye laughed right out and decided he would do good not to tell Ryo either.

"It's so nice to know that he is there though," Robyn added. "I don't have that back home." She thought back to the night her power went out. It had been so nice having him there, making her feel safe, but...

"You guys are spoiling me."

"It's one of our favorite pass times," Cye crooned as he kissed the crown of her head.

They climbed onto the docks and turned down a long stretch that led far into the ocean water. Robyn put a hand on her head where the kiss had been as if the action were offensive.

"You're not doing me any favors," she informed her friend.

"Hee hee, too bad," Cye teased.

They reached the edge of the peer and the two separated, each leaning on the opposite pole pointing out of the edge of the dock. They stayed quiet for a moment as each looked over the ocean reflecting the purples and oranges of the sunset.

"Pretty view," Robyn commented with a small smile. She wasn't a bit fan of the ocean, but she had to admit even it had its moment of grandeur.

"I like it," Cye shot back playfully. But then his expression turned melancholy as he gazed at the sparkling water. Soon after he had first met her, he had taken Cassie out here and gotten a real taste of how different his life could be with her in it.

The ocean was his first love and that spot was one of his favorite look out points. But he could not truly share it with her. It was something that couldn't be touched or experienced with any other senses. One could not truly know the beauty of the ocean without their sight.

And Cye had loved her anyway.

Robyn watched the same view without the same reverence. She only liked it because Cye loved it. Nothing more.

The dry, salty air blew in her face and Robyn reached for her chap stick in her front jeans pocket. Upon doing so, her hand brushed a warm, metal object that she had been keeping there.

"Cye," Robyn asked, catching his lonely gaze from the sea. "What does it mean when a guy gives you a key to his apartment?"

Cye's expression said he was going to have some serious words to that man who was presumptuous enough to offer such a thing.

Robyn laughed. "That's what I thought."

Her expression turned thoughtful. She would expect that, too–that is, from anyone else but him. Not Ryo. Because he didn't think like other guys...did he?

"Done with the view?"

Robyn didn't realize she had been staring at her shoes until Cye spoke to her. She jerked her head up then shrugged at Cye's amused expression.

"To tell the truth, I've had my fill of the ocean," Robyn admitted. "It was in walking distance where I lived and I would go out along the beach all the time. There were days I would stare out as long and far as I could. I couldn't take my eyes off it, knowing you guys were out there somewhere across the water. Now that I'm here, I don't see any reason to look at it for too long."

"You really missed us that much, huh?" Cye marveled.

"More," Robyn whispered as she gazed at the horizon.

"Then why are you not staying here?" Cye asked softly.

Robyn turned and gave Cye a look he felt himself often give. The same look he would try to hide when his mother asked him why he was so mopey lately and whatever happened to that nice blonde girl he used to hang out with. It was that same look Robyn gave him now and Cye knew, with all the information they were withholding from her, he had no right to ask.

"I'm sorry. Never mind," Cye mumbled, looking away.

Robyn didn't say anything. She just walked over and rubbed his arm reassuringly. She loved him–loved them all very much. More than anything even though she could not stay. And she could not bring herself to tell him this. Likewise, Cye could not express the words murmured in his heart either. So they continued to stand there silently, not saying what each wanted to say.

* * *

Nikki sat quietly in her chair, forcing herself not to fidget. There was a pile of note cards on her lap that she refused to let herself touch. She knew this material inside and out. She knew her work and there was no sense in making herself frantic with last minute reminders. In the background a bored sounding voice droned on about something involving male sperm whales and their comparative hump sizes. Nikki had stifled a laugh when she first read the abstract for the presentation. Not that she was so completely immature, but really. Only in the scientific community could someone bring up sperm and humps and no one batted an eyelash. 

Nikki let out a soft breath and touched her hair, making sure no loose strands had fallen out of the twist. Half of being a professional was the look. The doctor on the stage had the "look", although the one that made them all sigh in embarrassment. Some people just never could understand that tweed wasn't as attractive as it had been forty years ago, and there were alternatives to pocket protectors. Pens did have caps, you know.

Sperm guy continued speaking but the drone had become louder as he brought out his final climatic point about the importance of humps. Nikki snorted to herself, silently agreeing that yes, humps were important. Then she smiled, wondering how old she would have to be before these kinds of things didn't amuse her anymore. At least she wasn't as bad as some people she knew. She could just imagine the obscene jokes that would have come out of Rowen's mouth if he had been present.

"Thank you," the man said, not sounding all that thankful. "Are there any questions? Questions? Anyone?"

Nope. Guess he'd covered it as thoroughly as it could be covered. And maybe they just didn't care. Nikki gave a quick prayer to the science deity that no one had questions about her presentation. She was perfectly happy having no one care, because that would let her get this over with even more quickly. Sperm guy shuffled off the stage looking slightly disappointed. Lack of reaction to humps could do that to a man.

Twenty minutes. All she had to do was stand there and talk for twenty minutes; and afterwards, answer questions for another ten. Then she could go home. Twenty minutes. She could do that. Nikki allowed herself to glance through her notes one last time as she listened to her name being announced to the room full of people. At the sound of polite clapping, she took a deep calming breath and stepped out onto the stage, smiling as she walked up to the podium. She shook hands with the gentleman who had introduced her and then turned to the audience as the lights went up. She opened her mouth to start her presentation, but the words stuck in her throat as she stared in horror.

Oh hell. Rowen was there.

Rowen was sitting in the front row, dead center, slouching with his arms crossed. There was no mistaking that shockingly blue hair, and there was definitely no mistaking the trademark smirk on his face. Maybe sperm guy amused him too. But his eyes locked on hers and the smirk went to a stony glare. He looked pissed.

_Oh hell._

Someone coughed pointedly and Nikki started, suddenly remembering that she was in front of a room full of her peers, and that she looked like a fool standing there gaping and silent.

"Excuse me," Nikki said, clearing her throat as she leaned towards the microphone. "I've been having some trouble with my throat," she apologized lamely. Dark blue eyes bore into her like twin drills. Nikki decided to look everywhere but in his direction.

"Hello everyone. My name is Nikki Vanguard and I'm here to speak in Frou Jervansteinowoskyvitch's stead." She barely pronounced the name and flushed when Rowen raised one blue eyebrow sardonically. Hey, it wasn't her name, was it? "But she wanted me to extend her warmest welcome to you all."

"That woman scares the crap out of me," someone in the second row muttered and his companion snickered. Nikki gave them a glare and the pair quieted. She continued, trying to look over Rowen's head at everyone else. Unfortunately one chunk of blue hair kept working its way into her line of sight. Was he deliberately sitting as tall as he could? That would be so like him…

"Our work isn't quite as titillating as some of the previous presenters'," Nikki said with a half joke, making the crowd snicker, "But we hope that it will be a step towards uniting the world of quantum mechanical physics with the more practical needs of biochemical research. With the integration of this new technology we hope that we can examine…."

And she was off. There are rules of engagement in every social situation, and this one called for silence until Nikki's twenty minutes were over. After that it was a question/answer free for all, where anyone could cut down her work as completely as they wanted, given that they were scientifically accurate as they did it.

Nikki tried not to look at Rowen, because every time she did, it made her stumble. His eyes were glued to her face, not in the good way, and he didn't even seem to be paying attention to any of the visuals that she was explaining. Words tumbled from her mouth instinctively, but she was uncomfortably aware that he didn't once shift in his seat, and that his fingers stayed still on his crossed arms. She had Rowen's complete attention and that meant trouble. If there had been any way to extend the twenty minutes to take up the question /answer time, she would have done it, but eventually her time ran out.

Nikki didn't want to say it. Oh, how much she didn't want to say it, but she really didn't have much choice. And she wasn't about to make an ass out of herself in front of these people because she didn't want to have to face Rowen's questions. Nikki cleared her throat and steeled herself.

"That concludes my presentation. Are…there any questions?"

Rowen's hand shot up. Inwardly Nikki cursed. She looked around the room for any other person that might have a hint of a question on their face. Rowen's hand went higher and he waggled it pointedly. He was giving her no choice.

"…Yes, Mr. Hashiba?"

The first question he asked was easy enough to answer, and for a brief second Nikki thought that she might be able to squeeze out of this okay. But when she was done, his hand shot up again. No one else's hand was raised and she didn't have any other options. So she called on him a second time. The questions became progressively tougher and he started launching them at her one after another, cutting her off when she floundered for an answer and shooting out the next. The eyes that had seemed to ignore her graphs and diagrams had, in actuality, instantly committed them to memory. And he seemed determined to show her and the assembly every single hole in her research.

Rowen ripped her to shreds.

Nikki had stood strong in the midst of professional critique before, but she had never been subjected to anything like this. Rowen had always spent his time studying physics, but she had never known how in depth his knowledge on the subject was. Nikki's research was interdisciplinary, and when Rowen was finished raking through the physics part of her work, he launched into the molecular aspects with equal fervor. He had taken full flight and there was no stopping him when he reached this point.

Startled at the intensity of the young man's criticism, a few of her colleagues tried to counter Rowen's comments, but he shot them down as completely as he did her. If Nikki hadn't been on the receiving end of this, she would have been impressed with how he out-debated one world-renowned scientist after another, squashing their ideas and theories as thoroughly as he'd squashed hers. But instead she stood open mouthed with shock as he finally ended his tirade, his voice full of scorn.

"And that's why you have absolutely no idea of what you are talking about, _Dr_. Vanguard."

The silence that followed physically hurt. Then Nikki bowed her head politely, her notes clenched forgotten in one trembling fist.

"Thank you for your time," she whispered softly, then clicked off the microphone and walked off the stage with as much dignity as she could muster, her steps slow and calm. Then as soon as she was out of the eyesight of all those people, Nikki stormed away from the conference room, wiping angry tears out of her eyes as she headed straight for the long line of taxis she knew waited outside. A voice called her name out, but she kept walking, ignoring it. Her name was called out again, and Rowen jogged up behind Nikki, reaching out to grab her elbow and stop her.

"Don't touch me," Nikki hissed between clenched teeth as she spun around, glaring furiously at the tall man. She backed away from him, shaking her head. Her brown eyes glistened but she refused to cry in front of him, even when he made her look like an absolute idiot. She had never hated him as much as she hated him right now. Not ever, no matter how bad things had gotten between them. Nikki had never tried to deliberately hurt Rowen, although she had found herself doing it inadvertently countless times. But never deliberately. Did he have to make her feel so stupid in front of so many people? Only Rowen could that easily take her inadequacies and blow them up in ways that made her look like a monumental fool. And the only reason he did it was because he could.

Nikki backed up to a cab and opened the door, shaking from humiliation.

"Congratulations, Rowen," she said in a soft voice. "You won this one. I'm impressed, you're an even bigger asshole than I am."

She slipped into the cab and started to close the door, but Rowen caught it with one large hand. He leaned over and looked at her, arms braced against the doorframe and dark blue eyes glittering. She couldn't even pretend to read his expression.

"Welcome back to Japan, Nikki," Rowen said harshly, then he slammed the door shut. It rattled the entire car and made her jump. Worried eyes from the driver's seat glanced at her and the engine rumbled to life. As soon as the vehicle pulled away from the curb and out of eyesight, Nikki buried her face in her hands and burst into tears.

* * *

It was late. If he knew how long she had lingered outside his door, she wondered if he would have laughed. Time and time again she paced up and down the walkway outside his door. She would pause as if to knock and then loose the nerve and pace some more. 

Finally, Robyn got upset with her own cowardice and took a deep breath to pound on the door. Her resolve ran quickly and the powerful bang came out as a timid knock. Then she stood there with her heart pounding in here ears. It felt like she waited forever. Maybe she had knocked too lightly.

Then the door swung open and Robyn stiffened, her mind going blank. Ryo looked at her in surprise, but Robyn couldn't think of any words to say. All that she rehearsed in her head; all the questions about the key still burning in her pocket, it all flew out the window at the sight of his face.

The two stood there for the longest time, just looking at each other.

"Robyn?" Ryo finally spoke. "What–"

Robyn reacted. Before he had even realized it herself, she grabbed the front of Ryo's shirt and pulled him forward. Ryo wasn't as tall as the others. She hardly had to stand on her toes to kiss him. Just mouth touching mouth. That's all it was. It lasted for only a couple of seconds and then Robyn let him go and pulled away.

Ryo still looked confused as ever.

"Wh-what was that for?" he stuttered.

Robyn lowered her head, unable to look him in the face.

"I was just checking something," she said in an embarrassed tone, wishing she was suddenly anywhere else. "Sorry, I have to–"

She turned to go.

"Wait." Ryo grabbed her elbow and Robyn grimaced. She was going to have to explain this and she had no idea how.

But Ryo didn't say anything as he turned her around and placed his hands on her arms. He dipped his head and brushed her lips with his. This kiss was calmer, more controlled and thought out than Robyn's had been. And far sweeter.

Robyn didn't even realize she had closed her eyes until Ryo moved away and she opened them again.

"I wanted to check something, too," Ryo whispered with a smile.

His face was still so close to hers. Robyn was feeling a bit lightheaded. Her brain was turned off as she stumbled stupidly backwards.

"Well I--I think I need to go now..." Even Robyn's words sounded silly to her and she was fighting a losing battle with the stupid grin on her face. Ryo looked like he was going to say something and Robyn took her chance to turn and hurry down the hall. She hastened down the stairs and into the parking lot below.

"Hey, Robyn."

She paused as he heard Ryo call from his floor above.

"What?" she called, turning around sheepishly, fidgeting as she looked up at him. Ryo stood by the rail, leaning on it with his elbows.

"Call me when you get home, okay?"

Robyn's heart jumped. There was that stupid grin again. What was wrong with her?

"Okay! Bye!" she called and ran off, almost running into someone else as she turned around. Ryo just chuckled as he watched her go, a smile on his face.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N Em here. I just wanted to apologize to everyone who's been kind enough to review either this fic or any of my others in the last month or so and hasn't received a review reply from me. I usually try to be good about replying to every review but this last month and a half have been crazy busy for me. I'm finishing college and planning a wedding and it's been hectic...I promise to be much better from now on should anyone chose to review. Sorry it took us so long to get this out. Oh, and the language this chapter is a little rougher than normal. ;)

**The Blinding Mask**

Chapter Six

Just about every free waitress had been milling over that far booth for some time now. If Kento wasn't so busy helping other customers, he would have gone over there already. Finally he got a free minute and quickly shooed all the girls away and told them to get back to work. Then he turned his frustration to the man sitting in the booth.

"How about it, pal?" Kento demanded, hands on hips. "Do you want to order something or just loiter some more?"

The blonde man slouched further in his seat, looking guilty.

"Kento, I think I did something stupid," Sage admitted in a weak voice.

This certainly got Kento's attention. It was very rare anyone saw Sage looking so regretful or defeated. It was near unheard of to hear Sage admit he made a wrong decision.

Kento sat himself across from Sage, his business expression on.

"So what happened?" he asked neutrally.

Sage sighed; something he used to never do and was now doing quite often. "Kento, I saw Nikki in town the other night."

Kento stiffened at the girl's name.

"And, against my better judgement, I told Rowen about it."

Kento let out a noisy breath through his nose. "Alright," he said slowly. "What did Rowen do?"

Sage shook his head. "I didn't get all the details, but she was in town to give some kind of presentation. Rowen found out where she was, though I have no idea how, and though I'm not sure exactly what he did, I think its safe to assume he pissed her off royally. Again. Now he's holed himself up in his office since then. I don't think he's sleeping or eating in there and he's not talking to anyone."

Kento groaned as he ran his fingers through his hair. "That dumbass," he mumbled. "What goes through that idiot's head? Seriously!"

Sage nodded ruefully. "It's my fault. I shouldn't have told him."

"No, Sage," Kento informed him. "You were right to tell him. Rowen never would have talked to you again if you didn't. It's not your fault he's a raging idiot when it comes to Nikki."

"We have to do something, Kento." Sage sounded almost helpless and Kento didn't like that tone at all. "If we let him shut himself off for too long, this time we may not be able to bring him back. We have to get him out of that room and try to get his focus on something else, but I can't do it by myself. He doesn't listen to me any more."

"What do you want to do?" Kento offered the question as a sign he was willing to help.

"I don't know," Sage groaned as he ran a hand tiredly through his hair. "I was thinking maybe if we got Robyn around him, she could pull him at least a little bit out of his funk again. But that would be unfair to ask that of her and..."

"And you don't want to leave her alone with him in case he blows up at her again," Kento finished. "I don't blame you."

Sage straightened in his seat with a nod while Kento slouched further. He eyed Sage warily as a question hit his mind.

"Just out of curiosity Sage, why are you bringing this to me? I mean, I love ya and all man, but we both have to admit I'm not your go-to guy when it comes for asking advice. Why didn't you bring this up with Ryo or s-s...somebody." Kento had meant to say "Ryo or Cye" but he would be an idiot if he didn't know why Sage wasn't confiding in Cye.

"I would have," Sage admitted. "But Ryo's been increasingly hard to get a hold of lately."

"Yeah, he has been," Kento realized. He tapped his lip thoughtfully with one finger. "Huh. I wonder what he's been up to. Maybe he finally found himself something to do." Kento chuckled and then a thought hit him. "Hey, what if all of us just hang out tonight; Robyn and the other guys? It will be like old times. Maybe that will help Rowen."

"It's worth a try," Sage agreed, wondering why he didn't think of it first. "The only problem would be getting Rowen to come out of that disorderly, sloven wreck he calls an office."

Kento grinned. "Leave that to me."

* * *

Kento poked his head into the office, looking around curiously. The room was a glorious mess; waist high stacks of books, piles of loose papers, and a hundred different assorted gadgets that may or may not have had any relevance towards the sciences. There was a pile of about thirty yo-yos in the corner, and a large mallet leaned against a broken desk. There was a pencil hanging from the ceiling ominously and buried deep down beneath the clutter something was beeping. Only half of the room was decently lit, and some large bookshelves blocked his view of the back. Kento shook his head. Science dudes were all nuts. 

Some kid that didn't look old enough for college had pointed him in this direction when he had asked where to find Rowen. Kento hadn't missed the way they had rolled their eyes and told him that he might want to wait until another day. Obviously Rowen's foul mood had worked its way here as well.

"Hey Ro! You back there somewhere?"

There was silence, then a faint voice.

"Kento?"

"Yeah! Where are you?" Kento asked, trying to step around piles on the floor. He didn't want to mess up anything that might not look important but actually be the cure for cancer or something.

"I'm in the back," was Rowen's muffled reply.

"Hadn't figured that out yet," Kento murmured sarcastically. He followed what might have been a winding path through the junk, back behind the bookshelves. A tiny office-like area was tucked in the corner and there lurked Rowen, his blue hair sticking out wildly in every direction. His head was bent as he rapidly flipped through pages of a report of some kind, marking red slashes intermittently. The only difference here was that the clutter seemed more personal, and more Rowen-esque. Here several pencils hung from the ceiling and the books were stacked with their bindings showing for greater ease of finding. A bag of chips, several boxes of pocky, and an unmarked bottle of what looked suspiciously like alcohol were tucked in the corner, half hidden by an old blanket. It reminded Kento of a nest.

"Gee Rowen, swell place you have here," Kento said with a grin.

Rowen just grunted, head down as he tossed the paper aside and grabbed the next, red pen flashing.

"Are you actually reading that fast?" Kento asked curiously. "Or are you randomly marking stuff wrong?"

"What do you want, Kento?" Rowen asked brusquely. "I'm kind of busy here."

"Never stopped you before," Kento drawled lazily.

Rowen sighed and shook his head, the pen still flickering over paper, crossing out entire sections and rapidly scribbling notes. Kento tried to lean against the nearest solid seeming stack of stuff, which wobbled dangerously in response.

"Hey, you want to take a break and go get some coffee or something?" he suggested.

"Nope."

That was clear enough.

"Oh. Okay. How about food? I'll buy," Kento offered generously. Rowen's response was silence. Kento sighed silently. So they were going to do this the hard way then.

"No food. That's fine. So how about that Nikki? Busting into town without telling anyone…that must have sucked to find out."

Rowen's head snapped up and his eyes flashed, but then he looked down again, grabbing another paper.

"I'm busy here Kento, unless you had something specific you needed…?" It was a nice way of saying leave. Kento crossed his arms and made himself more comfortable.

"Yeah, Ro. I needed to talk to you."

"About what?"

"About whatever. It doesn't matter."

"Then you don't _really_ need to talk."

"No. But you do, so I thought I'd make myself available."

"Thanks. No thanks. Nice seeing you, Kento."

"You think I'm that easy to get rid of?"

"I certainly was hoping so."

"Dream on, pumpkin."

Rowen sighed dramatically and leaned back in his chair, staring at the pencils above him. He rubbed his eyes tiredly.

"You're not leaving are you?"

"Nope. I just got here and it's a long drive for me from work. What are all the pencils for?"

Rowen's eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"I'm testing a theory."

"A pencil theory?" Kento raised an eyebrow.

"You'd have to have been there to understand."

"Probably true," Kento agreed. "So anyways, about Nikki-"

"Kento!" Rowen barked. "Stop. Enough. You want to talk, that's fine. But not about her. She's not worth bringing up."

Kento looked at Rowen calmly.

"Oh. Okay. But she's worth holing yourself up in here all day and night and refusing to answer any phone calls?"

"I've been busy," Rowen growled.

Kento just shook his head, letting Rowen know he didn't buy it for a second. The blue haired man turned around and stood up, abandoning his papers, and he started randomly flipping through books. That particular nervous habit was one of the first things Kento had noticed about Rowen after they had defeated Talpa. When he was at a loss, Rowen literally hid himself in books. The boy who had kept a book in front of his face to block out the world had grown into a man who rapidly flipped through the pages, radiating intelligence and daring anyone to interrupt him. Kento dared, he always had.

"Yeah, I've been busy too," Kento murmured, taking Rowen's seat and positioning it in a way that half block Rowen in the corner. "It's kind of easier to keep things pushed off to the side because you're always working. That way you don't have to think about them as much."

Rowen said nothing, his face stony.

"But no one ever said easier was better, Ro."

"Thanks for the advice. Can we continue this later?"

"No, because later we will be around everyone else. I figured that it might be easier to unload on someone who's been in your shoes, without a bunch of people around."

Rowen snorted derisively.

"My shoes? How do you figure that one, Kento? Did Nikki pull one over on you too?"

There was silence, and then the larger man spoke softly.

"No, but Mia did."

There was nothing Rowen could say to that, and so he didn't.

"Only she did it with less…less of a lot of things. Less remorse. Less emotion. Less fear. Nikki ran, and I understand that hurt you. Mia didn't even run. She just went back to her life as if everything was the norm. She barely blinked."

Kento sounded sad when he talked about her, but he sounded resigned as well. As if he knew he couldn't change what had happened, no matter what his personal feelings about it were. He was the polar opposite of Rowen, who never rested until he was able to bring things back in the direction he wanted them to go. Who molded the world around his idea of how it should be. Maybe that was why he was in here, manically grading papers and Kento looked so damned relaxed.

"Sage told me about the conference," Kento continued after a long reflective pause. "At least what little you told him. You upset Nikki and you know it. At least you can upset her, it means she still gives a damn. I don't think that we could get Mia to flinch even if we all ganged up on her and threw everything we have at her. It's why I don't even try. If I thought that yelling at her would do any good, I would have started screaming at her months ago."

"Maybe it would be good for her," Rowen said tightly. Kento shook his head, eyes sad.

"No. All it would do would be to push her away even further. I lost enough of her…I don't want to lose any more."

"I appreciate the candor Kento, but what does this have to do with me?"

"You're eating your heart out over a girl that you're furious with, Ro. You're angry and you're hurt and you're backsliding. You've never ignored us, never. And you've never thrown any of us out, no matter if you're at work or not. You don't even do that to Cye, even when he's irritating you. So yeah. I'm concerned. We all are."

"Thanks," Rowen muttered, then he shook his head. "I just really want to be left alone right now, okay?"

"If I thought it would help you, Rowen, I'd make sure you got all the space you needed. But you have a bad habit of self destructing when you spend too much time with yourself. It makes you…twitchy. We think you need to get out. We all are going to hang out later. In fact, we should be meeting everyone in less than two hours." Kento glanced at his watch to confirm the fact.

"No Kento. I told you I have work to do."

"Leave it."

"No."

Kento sighed again, sounding even more tired, and his eyes watched Rowen wearily. The blue haired man tried to slip past him back into the main part of the room, but Kento scooted his chair over, cutting him off.

"Rowen, do you trust me?" Kento randomly asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Do you trust me? Do you trust that I won't lie to you? That I won't try to screw you over?"

Rowen raised an eyebrow at him. "Of course."

"And the others?" Kento pressed. "Do you feel the same way about them? Sage told you that Nikki was here even though he knew that it would hurt you. But he trusted you enough to tell you. So do you trust them?"

"…Yes."

"Then stop treating us like we're the enemy. A lot of shit has gone down and the last thing we need is to pull further apart. We've slipped far enough already."

Kento was starting to sound pissed, and Rowen understood why. No one liked the distance that was between them lately, but no one was willing to do what needed to be done to close that distance. No one was ready for that yet.

"Thanks for all this feelings crap, Kento. It really touched my inner child and now I know I will be able to weep in relief later. But right now, I really would appreciate it if you left." Rowen's eyes were flat. Kento glared at him.

"We have to meet the others, Ro."

"No." There was a stubborn finality in his voice.

They stared off, then finally Kento rose, deliberate cracking the muscles in his fist.

"Okay Rowen. I didn't want to do it like this…"

Outside the office, a couple students passed by. They paused in curiosity when they heard a loud thump followed by several cries of indignation. The sound of books hitting the floor only partially covered the, "Kento! Ouch! That's my thigh, dammit!" and the "Stop wiggling!" followed by one disturbing "Not so hard! Not so…AHH!" The students hurried away from the office, back to the safety of the humanities department and away from these science freaks.

* * *

Sage checked for the hundredth time that day to see if their plan was working. Between Kento and himself, they had managed to drag Rowen to the mall and have the others meet them there. Rowen still obviously didn't want to be there, but he was keeping it to himself so far. Currently, they were all in a wildlife store. It was full of mugs and shot glasses and posters and jewelry and other fun trinkets. Rowen was currently standing with Robyn, as he and Kento and tried to steer him towards all afternoon. 

Robyn, unaware of their plan, was happily raiding the stuffed animal section and had found herself a baby penguin and a soft panda bear to molest for a while. She was happily chatting with Rowen who just seemed to be listening to her, but not participating in the conversation. It worried Sage a bit. Rowen wasn't reacting to her or anyone. Though he couldn't sense Rowen was getting worse, he wasn't getting better either. Just tolerating everything around him until they would finally let him go so he could retreat back to his lab and let his emotions fester some more.

Sage sighed. Rowen was such a pain sometimes. Why couldn't he be easier to fix?

"Hey Rowen," Robyn was saying, leaning over to catch his attention. "You're totally spacing on me again. Are you tired or something?"

Rowen blinked and looked at her as if he hadn't noticed she was there all day. "Oh, sorry," he said lamely.

Robyn then looked worried. "You okay? You seem a bit down."

There had been a time when Rowen wished they hadn't decided to keep all their secrets from Robyn and in that time, he would have liked to discuss his problems with her. Not any more. He didn't want to talk about what had happened between him and Nikki with anyone any more. No one understood. No one really cared. They kept trying to cheer him up instead of letting him face the problem. He was sick of doing that and he wasn't going to let anyone else know about it so they could interfere.

"Don't worry about it," Rowen mumbled, brushing off Robyn's concerned expression. "It's just... stuff." And he wandered off to a different part of the store.

Robyn made a wise decision and left it at that. Everyone needed some space every now and then after a long, stressful day or week. She understood that and let it go. Besides, she was already being distracted by something else.

"Do you want one of those?" Ryo asked as he came up next to her and gestured to the many stuffed animals.

Robyn instantly blushed from embarrassment. "No, no, that's okay. I don't need anything," she insisted in a flustered voice. They weren't even technically dating and Ryo was already trying to buy things for her. And Robyn wasn't used to anyone trying to buy things for her.

"You sure?" Ryo pried, obviously taking some personal delight in her discomfort. She sure teased him enough. It was time for some payback. "I don't mind--"

"Well I'm done with this store," Robyn said as she fled to where Cye and Kento were standing. "You guys ready to move on?"

They were and the group moved back out into the sprawl of the weekend crowd.

The mall was busy today, but that wasn't a big deal. There was nothing specific they were shopping for. Though not everyone knew they were only hanging out for Rowen's sake.

Ryo stuffed his hands in his pockets and tried to keep his mouth from forming that same silly smile that it kept insisting on doing. Robyn was really cute when she was flustered, he decided. He wondered how he could start turning the tables so he could catch her off guard more. She was better at it than he was. It would be a challenge. He walked along next to Cye, listening to the auburn haired man trying to convince Kento about….something. Ryo wasn't really following the conversation. He kept becoming distracted, his eyes drifting past Cye to the other side of Kento where Robyn was walking. She glanced over at him and a faint blush touched her cheeks. Then she smiled as if embarrassed and glanced down. Ryo's lips started to twitch back up and he couldn't suppress them.

"No really Cye, I don't think you understand. It has nothing to do with it being a puppet show," Kento argued.

"Claymation," Cye interjected and Kento gave him a long suffering glance.

"Fine. Claymation," Kento allowed. "That's not what bothers me, it's the fact that they wear clothes. That's just weird."

"Lots of things wear clothes that shouldn't and it doesn't bother you," Cye came back. To the side Sage sighed and wished that they could change the discussion to something more…worthwhile. He glanced at Rowen, where the blue haired man stayed off to the side, a flat look on his face. There would be no talking with him. Sage looked to Ryo, but Ryo was in lala land, a grin on his face, although why was beyond Sage.

"Name one," Kento challenged.

"Okay," Cye said smugly. "The planter's peanut. You love him."

"That's not the same!" Kento argued. "He's not in clothes."

"A top hat and a cane don't count as clothes?" Cye asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Nope," Kento declared stubbornly. "Those are just accessories."

"So it's okay for the claymation to wear accessories, but not clothes?" Cye smirked, knowing he had won this one. Kento knew it too, but he didn't back down.

"It's a freakin' snowman, Cye! They shouldn't wear clothes, they shouldn't have moustaches, and they definitely shouldn't running around singing and dancing."

"But they can stand around naked and have little children play with them?" Robyn asked curiously.

Sage snorted in amusement and Cye grinned at her.

"Robyn! You're joining the dark side!" Kento declared, grabbing at his chest in mock pain. Robyn laughed and started tickling Kento. He swatted at her, a pitiful look on his face.

"Ryo, buddy, help a guy out!" Kento cried. "You're supposed to guide us against evil."

Ryo laughed and then decided that this was a perfect opportunity. Instead of simply shaking his head at Kento's antics, Ryo slipped behind his friends and wrapped his arm around Robyn's neck playfully. She yelped as he started to mess up her hair.

"Don't worry about it, Kento," Ryo said with a grin. "I'm on it."

"Good man," Kento said approvingly, watching Robyn try and fail to get out of the gentle headlock. "Don't let her out of that one, Ryo."

Robyn gave an expression that she didn't approve of Ryo taking Kento's side. Ryo smiled back with a wink, obviously enjoying how he had control of her. Robyn instantly started blushing again and put forth a bit more effort in trying to get free. But Ryo, though gentle, wasn't going to let go and Robyn sighed as she let him have his way. His arm stayed where it was around her neck as they continued to walk, and Robyn tried to get used to the close proximity. She wasn't used to this new display of affection. It felt awkward to her. But she couldn't deny it did feel nice to have him near and he did smell really good.

They continued to walk on and Sage noticed Rowen was lagging behind, happy to be forgotten.

"Hey, you guys want to see a movie?" Sage suddenly announced. "Rowen?" It was an attempt to bring him into the conversation but Sage merely got grunted at.

"My, you're articulate today," Cye commented, raising an eye in Rowen's direction. That just got him a dark glare.

Kento, the only other one who knew what was going on, raised an eyebrow but Sage caught his eye and shook his head. He mouthed 'leave it' and Kento just shrugged.

"Whatever. Rob, is Ryo choking you over there?" he asked the redhead. He realized Ryo had been hanging on her for quite a while now. What was up with that? Robyn was still locked in Ryo's hold, and her face was almost covered by the muscled arm.

"I'm good," came a muffled reply, and Kento laughed.

"So movie?" Cye asked, pointing to the theater on the other side of the mall. "There's got to be something good playing. It's almost six-thirty."

"Yup," Ryo said, letting go of Robyn and shifting sideways so that they didn't bump into a woman pushing a baby stroller.

Robyn took the opportunity to slip away from him and move to the back of the group. "I'm good for a movie. What do you guys want to watch?"

Sage shrugged. "I'm good for anything."

Robyn looked expectantly at Rowen who looked up. When he realized the question was directed at him, he shrugged. "Dunno. Something mindless with explosions."

Robyn laughed. "Sounds good. You guys hear that?"

"Works for me!" Kento agreed. "Let's go see what they're playing."

There were three different mindless explosion movies playing. Cye and Kento argued over which one as Rowen said he didn't care. Once they decided, a few of the group went to find seats while the others decided snacks sounded like a good idea. Kento was not amused with the game Ryo and Robyn seemed to be playing around him while in line. Ryo kept trying to stand next to her and she kept trying to get away from him. He wasn't sure when this game started or why, but Kento was beginning to get the feeling he was missing something.

Once she got her popcorn, Robyn shot off to the theater before Ryo was done paying for his. She jogged up to where her friends were sitting and eyed them all. Rowen and Sage were sitting together and the furthest in.

"Quick Sage!" Robyn urged. "Scoot over one more!"

Confused, Sage did as he was told. This meant Robyn was going to be sitting next to Rowen and he was okay with that. But when Robyn sat, then Ryo came down and looked a bit put out that she had a person sitting on either side of her. Robyn stuck her tongue out at him and Ryo sat down with a huff.

"What was that?" Sage wondered.

Robyn just shrugged and smiled innocently. Then she offered Rowen some of her popcorn as the credits began. Rowen, who usually loved his popcorn and just about anything else, hadn't been hungry the entire day and waved it off. The fact that he was starting to feel some odd, negative vibe from Ryo didn't help his mood any. Nor did it improve when they all then insisted they go to Robyn's place for drinks and card games afterwards.  
It grated on Rowen's nerves. Everyone around him was loud and happy and they had stolen him from his quiet solitude. He needed to be alone right now. Couldn't they see that? Couldn't they back off and leave him alone? Or at least let him go home? Rowen had tried to be polite, to give a valid excuse so he could get away and sort things out on his own. But they weren't letting him. And as calm as Rowen tried to be on the outside, inside he was simmering, close to boiling over.  
"I think I'm done, you guys," Robyn lay down her cards with a sigh.  
"That's because you have such a bad poker face," Kento joked. "You're worse than Cye."  
"Hey! I'm not that bad!"  
"And he said you were the one good at lying, Rob." Robyn turned to Cye, eyes wide and mouth open, pretending to be offended.  
"Cye!" she gasped. "Slander, I say!"  
"It was a compliment," Cye insisted.  
On the other side of Robyn, Rowen sighed heavily.  
"How is being called a liar a compliment?" Robyn demanded.  
"I didn't call you a liar. I was merely stating that you're very...descrete when it comes to certain things."  
Robyn raised an eyebrow at him. "That doesn't make any sense."  
"He means you're good at keeping things to yourself," Sage offered, still looking over his cards.  
"Omition of truth IS the same as lying!" Robyn argued.  
"So we're all liars, then."  
The voice, Rowen's voice, was quiet; but it got the attention of everyone i nthe room. It suddenly grew tense as the other Ronins tried to guess what would happen next.  
"Maybe," Robyn said lightly as if she didn't notice the thick atmosphere. "Though I suppose there are worse things one could be."  
For the reason Robyn could only guess at, Rowen looked right at Kento.  
"It depends on what you lied about," he said pointedly.  
"Don't start, Ro," Kento said back tiredly. He wasn't going to let Rowen sway the conversation in his favor if he had anything to do with it. "You're acting like you're the only one it happened to."  
"I'm not talking about that," Rowen countered. "I'm talking about you dragging me here and the rest of you ambushing me in this quasi-intervention you're doing."  
He turned he perturbed expression over to Ryo who looked at him blankly.  
"What are you talking about?" Ryo wondered. Suprised at the question, Rowen swerved his head in Sage's direction. The blonde lowered his face guiltily and Rowen knew he was onto something.  
"You know what? Screw you guys!" Rowen snapped as he stood up. "I didn't ask for your help! Stop poking your noses into my business and let me deal with it myself!"  
"You can't," Sage said, quiet but absolute.  
"What?" Rowen asked as if unsure of what he heard.  
"If you had been able to deal with it, we wouldn't be doing this," Sage said without hint of remorse.  
"You're selling me out, Sage?!" Rowen demanded incredulously.  
"Rowen, calm down," Cye urged, distaste clearly in his voice. "You're over reacting."  
"What would you know of over reacting, Cye?" Rowen snapped back. Nothing got under his skin more than someone telling him to calm down. "At least Sage showed remorse when Cassie died! You just stood there! Maybe you should have been the Ronin of Ice!"  
Cye jumped to his feet, slamming his palms on the table.  
"Don't tell me how I should feel," he said with a danger in his voice few have heard before.  
"You guys..." Ryo said in a warning tone.  
"Come on, sit down," Kento agreed. "This isn't the place."  
"No! This is what you wanted, isn't it?" Rowen announced. "You wanted me to talk about it? Well here we all are! Let's talk!"  
There was a span of uncomfortable silence. No one wanted to say what Rowen dared them all to speak out loud. Robyn was beside herself with what to do.  
"Fine," Kento said. "Why don't we talk about what happened between you and Nikki the other night? That's the whole reason we're here. Because you can't get over it."  
Rowen clenched his fists on the table top until his knuckles turned white.  
"Oh, so I'm the only one with the problem, huh? You guys are so perfect, but let's put Rowen's personal life on a platter so we can all see how much better off we are than him!"  
There was a tug on his sleeve. His maddened gaze flashed down to Robyn's worried eyes.  
"Rowen, it's okay," she said quietly. "If you want to talk about something then--"  
"No Robyn, I don't want to talk about it!" Rowen snapped ripping his sleeve from her grasp. "None of us would ever want to talk about it to YOU! You weren't there! You don't understand!"  
The rest of the Ronins tensed. Rowen was forcing out more information than they would have liked. Robyn looked hurt and let go of Rowen's sleeve.  
"I'd try to understand," Robyn said quietly. "I don't know what happened, but I've had--"  
"Yes, we all know what YOU'VE been through!" Rowen cut her off. "We're the ones that had to take care of it for you! And when it was over, you just ran off! Thanks for nothing Robyn! It's nice to know we meant so much to you!"  
"Rowen!" Cye tried to stop him.  
Robyn looked at him, her face full of hurt. She had never seen him like this. He seems so full of frustration and hate. It frightened her. What had happened to him?  
"You do!" Robyn cried. "You mean so much to me, but I didn't have a choice! I had to leave!"  
"That's bullshit and you know it!" Rowen yelled in her face. The fact that her eyes were starting to water seemed lost on him. "You don't care! How lucky for you that you can just leave when it's over. How great for EVERYONE! But we're stuck here! We don't get to run! We have to pick up all the pieces while YOU can run off to America where it's safe! You spineless--"  
Then between her and the raging Rowen was a black head of hair. Ryo stepped into Rowen and grabbed him by the collar, literally picking him up and forcing him backwards against the wall. Ryo was furious. At the moment his anger matched Rowen's, and Ryo punched the wall next to Rowen's head hard enough to break the plaster and rattle the room, making them all jump.  
"What is wrong with you?" Ryo snarled in a low voice. Ryo could yell as loud as any of them but when he used that lower tone, he sounded far more dangerous. "How can you come here and act like this? Are you losing your mind?!" His voice rose a little in his anger and he shoved Rowen back into the wall for emphasis.  
Rowen raised his face defiantly to Ryo. "What do you know Ryo?" he challenged, his own voice growing in volume. "What the HELL do you know about ANYTHING?! You got off easy. You can't even begin to imagine what it feels like. How can you pretend to understand what I lost-what any of us lost? Where do you get off judging me; telling me what I should be doing?"  
Ryo stared him down for a moment longer. Sage, Cye, and Kento were all quiet. Rowen had said out loud something they all had thought themselves at one time or another. But never with as much malice as Rowen had right then.  
Ryo had no retort for those accusations. Instead, he gripped Rowen's collar tighter and whirled him around in Robyn's direction.  
"Tell her you're sorry," he growled.  
Rowen shot an acidic glare in Ryo's direction and then ripped his shirt free. The two looked at each other before Rowen shouldered past him and to the door.  
"ROWEN!" Ryo barked.  
Rowen paused in his tracks. He was silent for a moment and then spoke without turning around.  
"Sorry..." he mumbled.  
Robyn slumped in her chair, shoulders low. She nodded slightly but, otherwise, didn't say anything.  
Rowen glanced back at her, his expression hard at first but then remorseful. Then it twisted into one of self loathing and he flung open the door and ran outside. A few jumped when the door slammed shut. Silence followed after.  
"Someone should go after him," Robyn said softly, still not looking up.  
Nobody moved or said a word. Robyn raised her head and said a bit louder. "Someone go after him. Please?"  
The grating sound of Rowen's old car squealing away reached them. Robyn clenched her fists in her lap.  
"You shouldn't have let him leave," Robyn continued, her voice cracking and rising. "He shouldn't be driving. What if something happens to him? He's really upset, he's not going to be--"  
"You're upset," Ryo said gently as he took a chair next to her and placed his hands over hers. "Don't worry, Rowen will be fine."  
"Yeah," Kento cut in lightly. "He just needs some time to cool off, then we'll go find him, okay?"  
Sage stood up and bowed in Robyn's direction. "I'm sorry. It was my idea. I thought maybe if we all got together, we could help Rowen out of this or maybe, at least, finally get him to talk it out. I'm sorry to put you in the way. I didn't mean for this to happen."  
Robyn shook her head. "It's okay. If it was for Rowen, I'm glad you at least tried. And even so, maybe he did get some things off his chest that he's been holding onto for a while."  
Cye stood on the other side of her and put a concerned hand on her shoulder. "Robyn, those things Rowen said, he wasn't talking about you. None of us blame you for leaving."  
Robyn nodded blankly. Then she looked up at them all. "Would it be okay if we called it a night?"  
"Want us to help clean up first?" Kento offered.  
"No, not really," Robyn admitted. "To be honest, I would prefer you guys left now. I'll clean up. I just want to be alone."  
The four young men just stood there looking at her and each other at the request.  
"Please," Robyn said softly. "I'd rather be by myself right now."  
One by one they slowly agreed and offered hugs and good bye's before letting themselves out the door.  
"Okay you guys," Ryo announced after he had shut the door behind them. "I want you to promise me none of you are going to pull something like that again. Rowen's attitude is our problem, not anyone else's."  
"I'm sorry, Ryo," Sage said again. "I pulled Kento into it. But Robyn had such a positive impact on Rowen when she first came, I thought she could help him."  
"I think there's really only one person who can help him now," Cye said solemnly. "And who knows if she'll even talk to him. What on earth is Nikki doing back here anyway? Those two..." He shook his head as his thoughts wandered off.

"Hey Ryo," Kento spoke up. "That stuff Rowen said to you, none of it was--"  
"I don't care what Rowen says to me," Ryo interrupted. "He can say whatever he wants. But if he talks like that to Robyn again I'll..." He clenched his fists without thinking. "Something needs to be done. If he's going to start lashing out at just anybody, I don't know if I want him to even fight with us until he's got his head on straight again."  
"But what if something happens and we need him?" Cye asked dubiously.  
Ryo sighed heavily, suddenly looking quite tired. "I know we have a responsibility to Rowen to help him. He's our friend and our comrade. But we have a bigger responsibility to protect not only the people we care about, but everyone. If we get too caught up in ourselves to even protect those right in front of us, then I don't know what the point is any more." He shook. "I'm going back in to make sure Robyn is okay. I worry about Rowen, but I..." His hand lingered on Robyn's door and his three friends looked at him with some realization.  
"The rest of you can look for Rowen or go home. I don't- I just can't bring myself to care about that right now."  
With that, Ryo walked back in, shutting the door in three very surprised faces.  
Robyn was just sitting at her messy table Ryo came back in and locked the door behind him. Robyn didn't look up, but Ryo could tell she wasn't happy with his return.  
"I said I wanted to be alone. I don't need someone to come looking after me just because Rowen yelled at me."  
"It's not like that, Robyn," Ryo said calmly.  
Robyn seemed to ignore him. She got up and started to clear the table. There wasn't much to clear off, just some glasses and the cards and a bowl of chips. Ryo moved to help, but Robyn would have none of that. Her body language told him to back off and let her do it so Ryo kept his distance.  
"I didn't want to leave you here by yourself," Ryo said softly.  
Robyn was standing over by the sink now, both hands leaning on it.  
"Because I'm weaker than Rowen is," she said, bitterness clear in her voice. "So you have to watch out for me. I'm not the one that tore out of here. You should be looking for him."  
"We'll find him eventually," Ryo assured. "Don't worry about it."  
Robyn sighed. "You should have just let him yell at me so he could get it out of his system instead of storming off into the night with it."  
"No," Ryo suddenly said sternly, leaving no room for argument. "I don't care who they are, I won't let anyone treat you that way. Even if it was Rowen, it was uncalled for and you didn't deserve it."  
Robyn threw a weak smile his way. "Thanks," she said softly. "I was really scared for Rowen. That isn't like him and I... I..." Her hands gripped the sink tightly and Robyn lowered her head to let her hair cover her face. He shoulders began to shake.  
"I'm sorry I ran away," Robyn sniffed in a tiny voice. She couldn't hold back the tears any more and started to cry.  
Ryo took that as his cue to approach. He put a hand on her shaking shoulders and Robyn turned right around and gripped his shirt as she pressed her face into his chest. Ryo's arms instantly went around her, one hand stroking her hair.  
"It's okay," Ryo said softly. "Don't worry about it. It's okay."  
"I didn't want to leave!" Robyn sobbed, the pain in her voice making Ryo's chest hurt. "I didn't want to... I'm sorry."  
Ryo held her tighter and let her cry, whispering to her that they didn't blame her and that everything was okay. Inside, a bit of his anger began to stir again. If Rowen had still been around, Ryo had half a mind to giving him a good punch in the face for making her cry like this.  
Eventually, Robyn's sobs died down, but Ryo didn't move. He was prepared to hold her until she told him otherwise.  
"I'm sorry," Robyn mumbled again into his damp shirt. "You probably hate this. I didn't mean to start bawling all over you."  
"I don't mind," Ryo said into her hair. "I want to be here for you when you need me."  
Robyn went quiet for a moment.  
"Ryo, there's something I need to know."  
"Yes?" came his soft reply.  
"I know something happened to all of you and it was very hard and you don't want to tell me. But can you please answer me one thing?"  
Ryo swallowed, not knowing what she was going to say. "I'll try..."  
Robyn pulled back to look him in the face, her eyes were a bit puffy and red from crying.  
"Are any of you in danger now? Are all of you safe?"

"..."  
Ryo opened his mouth as his thoughts spun through his head. He thought they were safe. They seemed safe. He felt safe…but life had taught him that meant nothing. Something could always be down the street, around the corner, in the next room. _Or even right there behind him. _Ryo barely suppressed an inadvertent shudder, and the way Robyn's eyes narrowed suspiciously told him that she could tell there was more than he was saying. Robyn pulled back from Ryo and wrapped her arms around herself. She looked straight ahead at Ryo's chest, her lips tightening.

"You're not sure. You want it to be able to say you are, but you're not sure, are you Ryo?" she softly, almost sad.

She sounded older and tired when she spoke. Not like the bubbly girl they used to know, but like an adult that understood more than she may have wanted to. Who knew there was nothing she could actually do about it. For a moment, she reminded him of the way Mia talked these days and it made his heart hurt. Ryo leaned in and took Robyn by her shoulders, giving her a tiny shake so that she looked up at him. His eyes locked on hers and his voice was fierce. When he spoke he knew that if he was lying, he didn't feel an ounce of guilt about it.

"I'm _sure._ I'm sure that everything is going to be just fine. And I will not let anything bad happen, Robyn. Not to you, not to the guys, not to anyone. Someone threw a really big rock into the middle of our pond and I know it sucks that you can still see the ripples, but I promise you that ripples are all that's left. What's done is done, what's finished is over, and everything _will be okay_."

Robyn breathed out in acceptance to that answer and nodded. She reached out to touch his arm; her fingers were like ice.

"Don't worry about me," she insisted. "Concentrate on keeping each other safe."

Ryo forced out an encouraging smile. "Don't worry, we look out for each other. Everything will turn out okay, you'll see."

He reached out and put his arms around her shoulders, pulling her compliant body into a friendly hug. For a while, Robyn just stood there. Then she slowly lifted her arms to lightly embrace him back and Ryo was able to hide the fact that he wasn't smiling any more.

In reality, he didn't know for sure how things would turn out. All he could do was hope it would all be okay. As he stroked her hair, Ryo couldn't help but wonder if this was what it was like. He couldn't ever relate to the pain of his friends. Not really. He cared about them all, both the Ronins and the girls, but it wasn't the same thing. For the first time, Ryo had been accused of it tonight and he knew Rowen had been right. Ryo knew he didn't have the same anxieties they did during that time; while Damian jumped in and out of their lives, hunting and taunting them.

They each cared for one of the girls in a way Ryo had never cared for another person. Was this what it was like? When any of the girls became afraid, did they run to his friends for comfort? Did they hold each other in the night like this and were his fellow Ronins forced to give them promises that everything would be all right? Even when they really had no idea what was going to happen? Even when it turned out they were completely wrong? How did that feel? How bad did it hurt them when they found out the truth that they were all liars and everything was not all right?

Ryo couldn't help but flash back to that time with the crystal was broken; when all their memories crashed into everyone and he saw the horrible truth. He saw how badly they had failed and it killed a part of him inside. The girls had been pulled away from them time and time again; experiencing unspeakable tortures Ryo could only guess at and it had all happened right under their noses. Sometimes they were just in the other room and not a one of them knew what was going on.

Ryo held Robyn close. He never had planned on feeling this way about her; never even saw it coming. It just happened. Part of him wished it hadn't. His biggest fear now was her knowing; of her getting involved. Even if he believed Damian was sealed off or even dead, it didn't matter. It still felt like all Robyn would have to do is find out what happened and it would start all over again.

As much as he loved his friends, he loathed to share their fate. He would die before he let anything happen to Robyn and would die if anything did. Realizing that frightened Ryo almost more than seeing Rowen's mental state earlier. Had it been frightening for any of the others to come to realize they loved this much? Until the day Robyn left, Ryo swore would not let anything take her from his arms.

* * *

Nikki had just stepped out of the shower and had pulled on her most comfortable sweatshirt when a heavy knock landed on her hotel room door. It startled her enough to make her jump, and hastily grab for her discarded pair of jeans. The knock came again, pounding loudly. 

"Hang on a second, will you?!" Nikki yelled, pulling on her jeans and getting to the door. She peaked through the peep hole. All she saw was blue hair.

"Great," Nikki mumbled. "Exactly who I wanted pounding on my door tonight."

Nikki turned around and walked away from the door, deciding that after all that crap at the conference the last thing Rowen deserved right now was a moment of her time.

"Open the door Nikki," a male voice rasped, almost as loud as the pounding had been. Was he crazy? Didn't he realize that yelling in a hallway was a great way to get security called on you? Nikki paused momentarily and pictured Rowen running away down the hallway while three men with night sticks chased him angrily. It made her grin and she was tempted to pick up the phone and make the call.

"Open the door, Nik! I need to talk to you."

Nikki walked back to the door and leaned in so that he was sure to hear her response.

"Wow it's getting late. Better get to bed soon. YAWN! Going to bed now…"

"Funny. Open the fucking door."

"Gee Rowen, how exactly does one fuck a door?" Nikki countered, making her voice just innocent enough that she knew it would tick him off. He was so predictable some times.

"Nikki, I'm not asking again. I will break down this door." Rowen's voice dropped dangerously, and Nikki knew him well to know that he meant it. Suddenly angry at getting bullied around in her own hotel room, she jerked back the safety chain and snatched open the door.

"Who the hell do you think you are, coming here and threatening me like this---Rowen? Are you okay?"

Halfway through her tirade Nikki drifted off, her eyes big as she stared at Rowen. He looked awful. Pale and drawn, with bloodshot eyes and his hair sticking up in every direction…he looked like he had just gotten into a fight. He was leaning forward, hands gripping the opposite sides of the doorframe in clenched fists.

"We…need…to talk," Rowen bit out. Nikki started to nod, then caught herself, backing up a half step.

"No thanks, Rowen," Nikki snapped. "The last time we talked it involved you publicly humiliating me. Thanks again for that, by the way. So whatever it is that's so very pressing, I'm sure you could find someone else that gives a damn. Try your girlfriend Sage, I'm sure he's got the time."

"Nikki," Rowen started as he stepped forward into the room. To his surprise he got thumped hard right between the eyes. Startled he stepped back, blinking rapidly.

"What the hell?!"

"Did I invite you in, your royal jackass-ness? No! So stay out! And unless you have a damn good reason for coming here, then just go away, okay?! I don't want to see you!"

Rowen stepped into the room again, easily dodging the second thump. He closed in on her, making her step back.

"The hell you don't want to see me," Rowen growled.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Nikki countered, staring defiantly at the tall man towering over her. It never occurred to her that she might be in a dangerous situation. She had fought so much with Rowen that she knew exactly what buttons to push.

_Kind of like foreplay._

Nikki blushed as that thought came to mind, and blushed again as Rowen pressed in closer, forcing her to keep backing up.

"It means that you didn't have to agree to come here," Rowen told her, his voice still a raspy growl. _Like an animal…_

Nikki jumped again and shook her head wildly.

"Of course I had to come here!" she retorted, thinking about Frou and her limp noodle speech. The man in front of her continued stalking her like a cat stalked a mouse, ready to devour it. Nikki's pulse rose and she decided that this man was anything but limp. He also looked half crazed right now, which made her heart skip a beat. She'd never seen him like this before. Rowen didn't look good…

"There is nothing," Rowen told her, as she still tried to escape. Her back bumped the television armoire and caught her where she was. He leaned in. "Nothing that can make you do something you don't want to do, Nikki. _Nothing_. You could have said no."

"Professional suicide isn't one of my strong suits," Nikki said, trying to slip past him. But Rowen put his arms on both sides of her, trapping her in.

"You decided to come here," Rowen snapped. "I didn't ask for you to come here. But you are and now we have some things we have to discuss. NOW."

The finality in his tone made her flinch. But it was possible that he was right. She had bailed and left without giving him any sense of closure. She owed that to him, didn't she?

"No." Nikki suddenly replied. Rowen looked down at her in disbelief.

"No? Why the hell not?!" he suddenly roared, temper flaring. His tone never even made her flinch. Nikki stood up on her tiptoes and went nose to nose with Rowen. Her own eyes were flashing, and somehow Rowen found himself backing up as she advanced on him, poking him in his chest repeated with one pissed off little finger.

"Cause you were an asshole to me, Rowen. Not just a little asshole, but a huge overwhelming asshole, beyond any asshole that anyone has ever been. That kind of asshole. In front of my peers, people that I depend on to give me grants so I can keep working and learning so that I finally 'have a fucking clue about what I'm talking about'!" She threw his words back in his face, continuing to move back towards the door.

"And until you have the human decency to apologize to me for that, then no, we aren't going to have this "talk". I'm not going to get ripped apart again and hung out to dry for your personal satisfaction without at least an apology for the last time, when I didn't deserve it! Do you know that I would rather have had you stand up and tell everyone in that room that I did all these horrible things that happened the last two times I was here, then to have you make me look like a fool? Because I can own up to my own actions, but I don't deserve to be intellectually destroyed by a man that knows darn well that he's smarter than me and shouldn't have found so much joy in brutally proving it in a crowd full of people! So…there!"

Nikki ended it with a final poke, with Rowen back at the doorway. Dark blue eyes stared down at her in an unsettling way but Nikki was still too mad to care. Silence, then Rowen finally spoke.

"I shouldn't have done that to you, Nik." There, he admitted it.

"No shit," she replied, then realized that he had caved first. That rarely happened.

"Now we are going to have our talk," he told her, starting back inside the room.

"Hey!" she said, realizing that he had her cornered. Now they had to have the talk. "Out of my room!" she told him.

"Why?" Rowen growled, once more raspy and dangerous sounding.

"Because…" _Because every time we are alone in a room we scream at each other then screw each other and I don't want to keep getting hurt by you._

"Just because, Rowen."

"Then let's go. My car's outside." His voice allowed no arguments. They stood there for a tense moment, his blue eyes drilling into her, her brown ones looking longingly out the window for some sort of reason why she couldn't go beyond her own fears and stubborn pride. Finally she caved too.

"Fine. Fine, Rowen," Nikki said. But then she looked at him with a flat cold expression, effectively masking a hundred internal emotions. "But after this, leave me alone, okay? Despite whatever you've convinced yourself, I _didn't_ come here for you."

_Bullshit_, her mind whispered traitorously.

Nikki didn't grab a jacket because she didn't think she would need it, but she did grab her wallet and she stuck it in her back pocket, along with the room key. Rowen watched her with eyes that continued to make her slightly uncomfortable. Had he really gotten in a fight? She was almost afraid to ask. Nikki locked her room and followed Rowen out of the hotel and down to the street below. She said nothing about how deplorable his car was. Nikki knew darn well how broke you could be when going through grad school. But she did tell him to freaking slow down when he hit the accelerator and the hunk of junk jumped out into traffic.

They drove in silence for almost twenty minutes. Nikki kept waiting for him to explode, to demand all those things that she knew he was dying to demand. There was a specific spot on his temple that always twitched when he was especially worked up about something, and it was jumping around like crazy. His hands were clenched on the steering wheel and his jaw was set in a snarl.

Finally Nikki couldn't take the silence any longer, not with the added darkness as they drove further away from the city.

"Well…why don't we just get it over with?" she said in a half sarcastic tone.

"Get it over with…" Rowen repeated, his voice mocking and angry at the same time. "Kind of like pulling a splinter, huh? Hurts like hell for a second but then you completely forget it?"

"Rowen, I never said that," Nikki said with a sigh, slouching down in her seat. She wished she had a seatbelt. She didn't like the way the roads were starting to curve as they drove along the coast, and she also didn't like the way that Rowen was picking up speed.

"Close enough, isn't it? Out of sight, out of mind?" That same mocking tone. Nikki didn't reply. When Rowen was like this there was no reasoning with him.

"Oh no," Rowen suddenly snapped. "You don't get to go all silent. You have to talk. You started this shit!"

"I started it?" Nikki looked at him in astonishment. "Started what, Rowen? Started Damian? Started the monsters? Started that whole horrible string of events?"

"Started us, Nikki!" He was yelling again, but this time it was different. This time it did bother her, because Rowen wasn't yelling the way he normally yelled. His voice was strangled, and he was yelling to cover up even stronger emotions. It made Nikki nervous. She wasn't sure what those emotions were or why he had them, or what they would drive him to do. Nikki also didn't know how to respond, but decided that Rowen didn't just want her to talk, he _needed_ her to talk. So she said the first thing that came to mind.

"You kissed me first," Nikki told him quietly, fingers digging into the seat as he rounded a corner. The moon reflected off of the ocean, which would have been pretty if they weren't careening around turns fifty feet above it.

"You wouldn't shut up," Rowen spat back. He was brooding and angry.

"You could have just told me to shut up," Nikki joked half heartedly.

"When did telling you ever mean you were going to listen?"

Nikki's temper flared up again.

"Rowen, do you have a certain number of jabs that you've determined to get in before talking about what we're here for? Or was insulting me the entire reason?" she snapped.

"Insulting you is the only way you'll actually talk to me," Rowen stated coldly, and Nikki jerked a little. That hurt. She would talk to him. She liked talking to him, he just was usually being an ass and the conversations always spiraled downwards. Nikki told him so.

"You could have tried more often," Rowen told her.

"Well maybe if you could be in a room with me for more than five minutes without either throwing something or trying to have sex with me than the conversation could have been better!"

"I never had to 'try', Nik," Rowen retorted. "That was the only thing you've ever been easy about."

That really hurt. Nikki clamped back her initial 'screw you' and sat silent in the seat. The car shot around a turn. She swallowed the lump that had risen in her throat and told herself that she wouldn't let him get to her. She wouldn't. And she wouldn't even try to defend herself. Rowen knew fully well that she hadn't been with that many guys. He was just using the sex as just one more advantage in this game they played. Did he even know that he was hurting her feelings this much?

"So I'm a bitch and a whore. Is there anything else or are we about done?" Nikki was proud that she kept her voice cool and distant. Watching Mia had taught her how. But Rowen was twitching even more, his entire body betraying his aggravation.

"It doesn't even phase you if I say that, does it? What the hell are you, the Ice Queen of America?" Rowen raged, yelling again, his voice cracking. "Do you even have feelings? Are you even human?!"

"Fuck you, Rowen!" Nikki finally lost it, losing her balance and slipping sideways as the car hit a bump. "FUCK YOU! You have no clue how I feel or how much it hurts! You have no idea how much I care! But you never wanted to know that, it's too much fun trying to hurt me---"

"You can't be hurt, Nikki! You don't have enough emotions to be hurt! You are callous and cold and…and…" he drifted off sputtering.

"WHAT? I'm WHAT Rowen?" Nikki yelled back, tears in her eyes at this point. If there was ever a sign that they weren't meant for each other, this was it. He was breaking her heart and had no idea and she was letting it happen. She shouldn't care what he felt about her, or his opinion of her, but that it was this bad ripped her up inside. She gave up everything for him! Everything! The nightmares she had every night, the memories she couldn't erase, the scars no one knew about…she gave up her life as she knew it for him!

"What?!" she cried. "Just SAY IT! Just say it, Rowen! And what?!"

"...And you left me. And you never looked back. Not once, Nikki."

This time the car actually went off the road and Rowen had to jerk it back on.

"Slow down, Rowen! Slow down!"

But he didn't. He just plowed on ahead, reckless and uncaring, as if there was nothing left in him to lose.

"You left and never gave me the chance to understand anything! You left me with the hurt and the betrayal and you never once tried to explain it! All I have are these fuzzy memories of us being…something…and now we aren't because you left me twice without a second thought!" The words were pouring from his mouth, coming so fast that they jumbled together.

"You have no clue what those choices did to me, Rowen! You have no idea!" Nikki cried, punching her seat in frustration and yelping in fear as the car swerved dangerously. He was going to get them killed!

"Then prove it!" Rowen roared. Tire screeched.

"How? Oh god, we're going to die… HOW, Rowen?!"

"By proving that I meant more to you than what you sit there and pretend!"

"Rowen, oh please slow down, what do you want me to say?! We were both there! We never once ever said how we felt about each other!"

"Then do it now! Say it now, Nik!"

"NO!" Nikki was actually crying now, both from emotion and fear of his driving. "No, because you'll just use it against me, the way you always have! Every single thing we ever say and do is a fight, and I can't prove anything to you without getting hurt! You tear me to shreds just to win!"

"Me?! What about you? You're the same damn way, Nikki!" Rowen yelled, punching his steering wheel and making her yelp again.

"Rowen, please oh please slow down oh please oh please we're going to crash…"

"Not until you show me something real Nikki! Show me something real for the first fucking TIME IN YOUR LIFE!" Rowen was screaming now, hitting the steering wheel repeatedly and Nikki's nerves were shot.

"FINE Rowen! Fine! Whatever you want, I'll do whatever you want just SLOW DOWN!" Nikki shrieked as they shot around another corner. There was a squeal of tires and Nikki cried out, bracing both hands on the dashboard so that she wouldn't go flying into the windshield as the car screeched to a stop half off the road. She sucked in a gasp of relief, eyes huge as she stared at the road in front of them and how high up they were from the water below. The edge of the cliff was only six feet away from them.

A large, rough hand grabbed the back of her head and she was being yanked around toward Rowen. His mouth came down on hers hard, bruising her lips as he kissed her. Kiss was a relative term. This was more violent, more controlling then a kiss should ever be. His arm went around her waist and he jerked her up to him, half pulling her across the stick shift. His other hand wrapped into her hair and snapped her head backwards, bending her so that she was caught helpless. He deliberately bit her lower lip and she gasped in pain, opening her mouth. Rowen thrust his tongue between her teeth, deepening the kiss. He was hurting her and Nikki pushed against his shoulders uselessly, trying to get him to back off. Hampered by his fastened seatbelt, Rowen crushed her tighter to him, pulling her completely off of her seat and into the middle of the car. Nikki punched his shoulder with her fist as hard as she could, and Rowen grunted, coming up for air.

"You asshole!" Nikki snapped, brown eyes flashing furiously.

With all her might, she shoved herself away from him and fell back onto the passenger seat. Rowen stared at her, eyes wide and panting. But Nikki was too furious to be intimidated by him at this point.

"What the HELL do you think you're doing?" she demanded. As confused and scared as she had been all night, the anger was making her thoughts surprisingly clear. "I get it Rowen! I really do! You can be as mad as you want because I left you! Because I ran away before you could get your "closure" from me. Because you don't have all your memories. You can be as mad as you want! But don't you DARE come at me with this, Rowen! You can't force me to say we had something by threatening me or jumping me! That's not love, Rowen! You don't even know what love is! You don't–"

And she was gone.

It took a moment for Rowen to realize what happened. All he knew at first was that one moment she was sitting in the passenger seat yelling at him; the next, her whole body was gone. The rest of the incident caught up to him a split second later and it felt like it played itself backwards in his head. When he realized Nikki was gone, then he noticed the windshield shattered by her body passing through it. Then he felt the bone jarring jerk of the car being crushed from behind. Lastly, he heard the squeal of breaks as the semi truck drove around the corner and plowed right into the rear of the car.

For a moment, Rowen couldn't breathe. He didn't know if it was because the force of the impact had shoved his chest into the steering wheel or if it was because of what he saw. Outside the shattered windshield, several feet from the car, Nikki's body lay face down in the dirt.

Rowen flung open the door and ripped his body from the seatbelt. His heart felt the electricity of utmost fear as he scrambled over to Nikki's lifeless form. Behind him, the truck driver already had his cell phone out and was calling an ambulance.

Shaking, Rowen rolled Nikki over, gathering her up in his arms.

"Nikki, are you okay?" Rowen asked in a scared whisper.

The blood was already rising to the several cuts all over her face. Broken glass was everywhere on her clothes and in her hair. Rowen shook her a bit and Nikki's eyes fluttered open, looking at him with an unfocused gaze and then closing them again. Rowen's breath caught in his throat.

"Nikki... Nikki? NIKKI!!!"

* * *

Ryo shifted as he drifted out of sleep, slowly opening his eyes. He was all alone. Ryo snapped straight up, looking around wildly. Where was he? What happened? 

"Robyn?" Ryo called out, trying to keep the panic from his voice. A cold chill filled him as he looked around.

"Robyn!"

"I'm here," came a voice as Robyn walked up the hall into the living room. She was dressed in her pajamas and was running her fingers through her hair tiredly. "You okay?"

It took a while for Ryo to recall what happened. He remembered lingering longer at Robyn's place after they had their talk. After cleaning up, they both settled on the couch to watch some tv. Ryo surmised he must have fallen asleep there.

"Yeah, sorry," Ryo said in partial embarrassment. "I didn't realize I fell asleep. I guess I kinda forgot where I was."

Robyn raised a brow at him. "Well what did you think happened to me? You sounded a little worried there."

For a split second, all Ryo's fears flashed through his head and then he rubbed his face tiredly. "I don't know, I just... I don't know."

Robyn sat down on the couch next to him and ran her hand over his back and shoulders in a calming motion. Without words, it felt as though a conversation passed between them and Ryo leaned into her, putting his head on her shoulder. Robyn put her arms around him and Ryo let out a tired sigh. The two sat there quietly, comfortable in each other's silence.

This was something different for Robyn. She never had a man in her arms before. Even though she was comforting him, she felt safe somehow. Was this what it was like to have someone? It had been so long since she had let herself get close to anyone, that in truth, there was a part of her that had forgotten what it was really like. And, while she enjoyed it, a part of her hated to be reminded of it. It made it even harder to leave it behind again.

Ryo's phone rang and he sat up to pull it out of his pocket. He looked at the device in puzzlement. It was the middle of the night. Then he looked worried, for it WAS the middle of the night. Robyn watched on as he talked to whomever was on the other end.

"He did what?!" Ryo's voice rose an octave. "Is everyone okay? ... Uh, huh. Yeah. Yeah. No, I'll be down there as soon as I can. Stay with him, Sage. Yeah, bye." Ryo hung up and turned to Robyn with a sigh. This was not going to be easy to explain.

"Was it Rowen?" Robyn asked before he could say anything.

"Yeah," Ryo frowned, suddenly looking very tired.

"Is he okay?"

"Yeah, he's fine. But I had better–"

"That's fine," Robyn nodded, her face not betraying anything. "You go if you need to. I–I'm not going to get involved. I'm not going to try to interfere any more. I just want you guys to do whatever it is you need to do to solve all of this, okay?"

Robyn was a bit surprised with just how much relief she saw on Ryo's face. But it didn't matter what he thought. Unbeknownst to him, when Ryo had fallen asleep earlier, Robyn had done some thinking. She thought about him and about the fight that had happened and about what she planned to do in the future. All of this was taken into consideration when she had spoken out loud. No, she would not get involved in this. She was not going to get involved with anything that belonged in this country. She was going to get herself back on track and do what she came here to do and then, she was going to leave.

"You sure that's okay?" Ryo tested once more as he got to his feet. He was itching to get to the hospital and see what was going on, but he had to make sure.

"Yes, I'm sure. You can go," Robyn confirmed. "They obviously need you and I want you to be there for them."

Robyn's complete turn of emotions confused Ryo a bit. But he was still very grateful that she had made this decision. So many other not so great things had happened lately, Ryo was going to take what he could get.

"Thanks Robyn, I really appreciate this," he smiled as she walked him to the door.

Robyn just nodded, keeping her head low as if to hide her expression from him.

"Just stay safe okay."

Ryo turned to opened the door and, as Robyn watched his back, her stoic mask slipped and disappointment showed clearly on her face. She wanted him to stay. She knew she had decided against it, but for just this one night she wanted to know what it was like to sit in the dark in the middle of the night and not be afraid. She wanted to feel strong arms around her, perhaps even as she slept, knowing she was safe. But the opportunity was gone and it wouldn't be happening again.

"Later Robyn," Ryo called as he ran out the door.

"Good bye, Ryo," she said with finality as she closed the door.

Ryo paused in his stride. He was a few paces down the hall before her voice had reached him. The door was closed now, but there was something in her tone that made him stop in his tracks. A little nudge in the back of his brain advised him to go back. But as he considered his options, his phone rang again and Ryo answered it as he ran off down the hall.

* * *

Mia was furious as she rushed through the hospital doors. She'd just known something like this would happen. She knew that it was wrong for Rowen to know Nikki was around. All he ever did was hurt her; completely oblivious and unaccountable for his actions. Mia was almost as mad at Sage as she was at Rowen. None of this would have started if Sage hadn't kept his mouth shut. And the only one of them with the sense to call her had been Ryo as he had rushed to the hospital himself. 

Mia skidded to a stop at the front desk of the ER to ask which room they were in. Half running, she could see Cye and Kento standing outside her destination. Kento looked away at her approach, but Cye opened his mouth to speak to her. Mia didn't wait and shoved her way past them and through the door. Nikki was lying in the hospital bed, her eyes slightly glazed over and several bandages covered her face. She was very pale, and she seemed confused.

"Nikki..." Mia said softly, worriedly. She stepped to her friend's side and touched her hand. "Are you okay?' she asked. Nikki gave her a half hearted smile, wincing as she moved.

"They tell me I am."

"What happened?" Mia pressed, still ignoring the shuffling of feet behind her. Nikki's face scrunched in more confusion and her eyes drifted behind Mia's head.

"I'm not sure...I was with Rowen...I don't remember," she finished, sounding scared.

Mia squeezed her hand and then turned around, hands on her hips. Her face was livid and she was shaking from anger. It was the most emotion they had seen on her in a long time. Still she kept her voice at a forced calm.

"Where...is...Rowen?" she growled, glaring at Cye and Kento. They stared at her in consternation and worry, but no one answered. Of course they were protecting him, of course!

"Fine," she said. "I'll find him myself," she added as she stormed out of the room. Oh, she was going to give Rowen a piece of her mind. If he wanted to be an idiotic asshole than that was his prerogative, but the moment he started hurting her friends...

"Mia, wait!" A deep voice called after her as she stormed down the hall. Kento caught up with her quickly, his long strides easily matching hers.

"Mia, please, stop for just a second. You don't understand---"

"I understand that Rowen is a jackass and no one has the guts to tell him that, including you, Kento!" Mia snapped, taking him aback. But Kento reached for her arm to stop her even as she rounded the corner.

"Mia, damn it, just don't push this..." But he dwindled off because Mia had stopped dead in her tracks. The anger slowly dripped off her face, quickly replaced by something indiscernible. Both Sage and Rowen were in the hall, not more than fifteen feet away. Rowen was sitting on a bench, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees and his face in his hands. Even from there she could see that he was shaking violently. His face was hidden from view. Sage's face wasn't, however. The blonde was kneeling in front of Rowen, his head close and he was talking softly and rapidly to the other man. If whatever he was saying was helping, they couldn't tell. But Mia had never seen Sage look this worried before, never. And the steady stream of words coming from the usually quiet Ronin's lips was enough to make Mia's anger slip.

They must have heard her and Kento, or maybe they just sensed Kento's presence through the armors, but at the same moment both Sage and Rowen looked up and over. Rowen, usually pale-skinned, had gone white as a sheet, and his eyes were darkened in their sockets. He looked haunted. The last of Mia's anger dissipated as she realized the Rowen looked on the edge of tears, and she had never ever seen him anywhere close to crying.

Kento's hand gripped her arm and he pulled her back around the corner gently, even as Rowen buried his face in his hands once more and Sage went back to whispering. Mia leaned back against the wall, Kento's hand still on her elbow, and she took a long ragged breath. Rowen... Anyone who didn't believe that she still cared very deeply for them all was a fool, and it hurt to see him like that. Rowen looked._..broken_. Mia took another ragged breath and closed her eyes. Things weren't supposed to be like this. The Ronins were supposed to be okay. Wasn't that why she did all of the horrible things that she had done, so that they would be okay?

"Easy," Kento murmured to her, his other hand moving to her waist to steady her. Mia hadn't even realized that she needed steadying. "Everyone's okay," he told her.

"Rowen...is...not...okay." The words came slow because they stuck in her throat.

"That's not your fault," Kento replied, shifting closer and leaning in so that he could speak softly in her ear. "None of this is."

How did he know? How did he always know what ran through her brain? Mia's emotions lurched once more, in ways that hurt too much to think about, and she let that cold mask settle down across her features, pulling away from Kento as she did.

"Did I say it was?" she replied, her voice sounding harsh in her ears as she turned her back on him and headed back towards Nikki's hospital room. Kento followed at a distance silently. Mia refused to look at him, just in case her hasty words had hurt him.

When Mia stepped inside the hospital room once more, a tall man in a white coat was examining Nikki, shining a light in her eyes and asking her questions. She didn't get all of the questions right. Cye had retreated to the far corner of the room, keeping a silent watch over her while Mia was gone.

"You're going to be just fine," the doctor said finally. "There will probably be some scarring, but we won't know for sure for a month or two. If there is, I can recommend you to a plastic surgeon who could easily reduce those marks up to eighty-five percent. So don't worry about that, Ms. Vanguard. You definitely have a concussion as well. Your brain suffered some bruising when it hit that window. It's what's causing your memory loss. It's nothing serious, but don't be surprised it you never regain your memories of the past twenty-four hours. That's completely normal."

Nikki looked briefly confused but nodded. The doctor looked at Mia.

"Dr. Vanguard said that she was close friends with you, Miss...Koji?"

"Yes," Mia nodded. "I'll let her stay with me. But she has a flight to catch to America tomorrow..."

"I would suggest no travel for at least a week if not two," the doctor confirmed. "Often in automobile accidents, some injuries take a day or two to manifest themselves. And while I'm quite sure there is no further brain trauma, I would still think it a good idea to stay on the safe side."

Mia nodded and thanked the doctor, who told her they were going to be releasing Nikki in a few minutes. They all filed out to leave Nikki alone to get out of her hospital gown, except for Mia. The brunette sat in the corner chair as Nikki sluggishly moved to pull her shirt back on.

"Nik, are you okay?" Mia asked again, worry thick in her voice. Nikki nodded and tried to give Mia a reassuring smile. When she spoke, her words were slow.

"Yeah, I just feel like my head's stuck in slow motion. Nothing makes sense the way it should." Her dark eyes grew worried. "Mia, where's Rowen? Is he okay? I vaguely remember him bringing me in here…and him knocking at my hotel room door...but nothing else before or after that. The other guys got here, but I don't know what happened to Rowen. I'm...worried that something bad might have happened to him." It was unlike Nikki to admit something like that, but then again her brain was all mushy.

"Rowen's okay, Nikki," Mia reassured her. "He's...he's just worried about you." That had to be true enough. Rowen had looked sick with worry. Mia didn't know if it was a good idea to tell her friend that though. However Nikki turned her big brown eyes on Mia and asked in a tiny hurt voice,

"Then why did he leave me here? All by myself? I was really freaked out until Cye and Kento showed up. I was scared something happened to him. He wouldn't have ever left me before..." Another admittance. What a night.

"Nik..."

Tell her the truth? Nikki had always been the one person that knew all of Mia's secrets. It was too late to start hiding things from her now. Mia really didn't want to, to hell with the consequences. She had never tried to protect Nikki. The other woman was more like her partner in crime. It struck Mia as insane that she trusted Nikki to hold her own but went to hell and back to try and protect five grown men that were trained warriors. The heart and the mind had a strange way of ignoring each other.

"Nikki, Rowen's upset. Really upset. I think that Sage is keeping him from you, to try and help him."

Nikki nodded and slowly slipped from the bed, weaving unsteadily. Mia jumped up and wrapped her arm around the shorter woman's waist. Together they left the hospital room. In the hall, Cye stepped forward instantly to help them. Mia shook her head sharply. No, they were fine. They were always going to be fine. Cye stepped back, his green eyes lingering on Mia as if he knew what she was thinking. Nikki stumbled again right before they got to the hospital doors, staring blankly around her. Then her face scrunched up in frustration, once more looking lost and just a little scared. Everyone around her was speaking in Japanese and she couldn't process what they were saying the way she normally could. She was in a foreign country and she was confused and she was shaken up. The words slipped out of her mouth in English as she slumped against Mia's shoulder.

"Rowen...where _are_ you?" she whispered in a soft, hurt voice, closing her eyes.

"I'm right here," said a soft masculine voice just behind her shoulder, speaking English so she understood. Nikki's words were slurred as she stretched out a hand to him.

"I thought something happened to you," she said fuzzily, unaware that she was saying these things in front of so many people. "I couldn't find you. They told me there was an accident, but it didn't make sense. What were we doing there? Why were we out there?" Then her eyes fluttered as if she was going to fall asleep.

Mia unfortunately was looking directly at Rowen while Nikki said these things. It was obvious that she didn't remember the car crash and that it had been Rowen's recklessness that put her in the hospital. Nikki's unintentional words struck Rowen like a fist in the face. He paled again, rocking back as if he'd been slapped. His eyes weren't wild anymore; they were filled with such naked self loathing that Mia couldn't help hurting for him. She knew exactly what that felt like.

Sage's hand was on Rowen's shoulder as support. All eyes were on him, but his were on Nikki as she slumped against Mia's shoulder.

"I don't remember anything. Why were we out there?"

Rowen opened his mouth, then clamped it shut painfully. Then he stepped forward and took Nikki from Mia, bending down and lifting her up in his arms. Her head fell against his shoulder, her dark hair fanning down his arm.

"It's okay, baby. Don't worry, just get some rest," Rowen whispered softly in a normal voice, even though his face was twisting with self disgust. Nikki nodded against his shoulder trustingly. Then she slipped into a fuzzy half-sleep. Rowen carried her outside, to where Mia's car sat waiting. Mia unlocked it and Rowen gently laid Nikki down in the back seat, shrugging out of his jacket and wadding it beneath her head. Nikki reached for his hand as he did, and for a moment Rowen stood completely still, her fingers touching his. Then Nikki moved and Mia slipped in between them, closing the door. Then she turned on Rowen, unsure of what he was going to do or say next. They all were.

"I'm taking her home with me," Mia said quietly. Rowen nodded, eyes clinging to the form that was visible through the windows. A light rain had started to fall, misting around them and forming droplets on the glass, making it harder to see her as they stood there.

"I don't want you there," Mia admitted, her eyes flickering to them all. And she didn't. Things were already difficult enough. She braced herself for the fight that she knew would come from Rowen. It never did. Rowen just nodded, not lifting his eyes to meet hers.

Mia took her opening and didn't give Rowen a chance to speak up if he suddenly thought better of it. She hurried into the car and Rowen continued standing stalk still as it started up and moved away. In its wake, a figure was left standing there; hands in his jacket pockets, black hair glistening from the rain. Rowen looked up, his expression weak and vulnerable. Ryo met his with a steady gaze that stayed stern and betrayed nothing. The other three Ronins stood back, waiting for something to happen.

Ryo walked slowly up to Rowen, halting directly in front of him. Waiting. And then without warning Rowen finally cracked. His face twisted in pain and he stumbled one step towards Ryo, clutching his arms. Though he was taller, Rowen still slumped over and rested the bridge of his nose on Ryo's shoulder. Like a child hiding from the world. His shoulders were shaking violently as Rowen whispered something to Ryo in a strangled voice and Ryo's stern expression slipped away with a sigh. Ryo wrapped an arm around Rowen's shoulders as the man continued to tremble, holding him tight. It wasn't the first time he had held one of them on their feet when they were in pain, but it hurt Ryo that he couldn't fight this battle for Rowen or do anything to protect him. There was no protecting someone from their own self, not when they didn't want it.

"It's okay, Ro," Ryo whispered softly. "I'm sorry too."


	7. Chapter 7

A/N Sorry it took so long. Hopefully it's worth the wait.

**The Blinding Mask**

Chapter Seven

"Kento, if you had the chance to face an old fear, would you do it?"

Kento's head snapped up and he stared at Robyn, the heavy box of papers left forgotten in his arms. The question had come out of nowhere, which was typical of her. But the way she said it wasn't. It was deliberately casual, lacking the normal wishful tone she had when she talked of the things she wanted to do. Kento eyed her warily from across the office where she sat typing.

After the whole blow up at Robyn's apartment, Kento had worried it would be awkward for them at work. And it was a bit at first. But Robyn was good at pretending everything was fine. They all were. When she had not asked him any further questions about that night, Kento relaxed and went about his day. But this question, he had no idea where it came from.

He hesitated before replying, choosing instead to put the box on the top of the wall shelving, far out of the way. He gave it a little push, making sure there was no danger of it tipping back and falling on any of them.

"What do you mean, Rob?" Kento asked her, voice light. "Are we talking old high school bullies here? Or the big bad under the bed?"

Robyn didn't look up from her typing. "You never got bullied in high school, Kento," she reminded him flatly.

There was no good humor in her voice like there used to be. After the fight, she had called in sick for a few days. At first, Kento had wondered if it had anything to do with her being upset over Rowen's melt down. But when Robyn finally came in, pale and baggy eyed, Kento believed the excuse was legitimate. However, he wasn't totally convinced her sickness was completely coincidental, either. He honestly hoped they weren't the cause of this and tried his best to lift her spirits when he had the time.

Kento grabbed another box and put it up next to the first.

"So whaddya mean?" Kento asked her again. Her fingers stopped typing for a moment, hesitating over the keyboard. "What kind of fear?"

"Any kind," she said softly. "Something that really scared you that you had a hard time getting over. If you had the opportunity to face it again, would you take it?"

Something frightening he couldn't get over... He had seen fear incarnate, its physical form tearing his world apart piece by piece. He had felt despair so thick that it suffocated him, pressing in from every side, and he had buckled beneath it. He had fought fear and had lost everything to it. If given the chance would he face that again?

"So would you?" Robyn pressed, turning around in her chair.

"Hell no," Kento snapped, giving the second box a harder shove than he had intended. It slid back to the wall and crumbled in several inches where his hand had been. Robyn's eyes widened slightly at the vehemence in his voice, watching as he turned around and reached for the last box.

"I'm not a fool," Kento muttered under his breath, trying to push away the mental images that rose unbidden at her words. He shook his head angrily, forcing himself to see only what was in front of him. The past was done, it was over. By the time he regained his composure, Robyn had already returned to her work, the computer keys clicking. Kento took a deep breath and tried to normalize his tone, wishing he didn't feel so unnerved so suddenly.

"Hey Rob, sometimes you just have to leave things in the past, you know?" he said. "Move on. Rob?"

"Yeah, sure, Kento," Robyn said idly, her mind now far away from the conversation and her eyes glued to the computer screen. "You think it's foolish. I understand."

"Yeah..." he murmured and left her to her work. As he glanced back towards the office an uneasy feeling stayed with him. However, he had the day's business to attend to and was forced to ignore it for now.

* * *

"What do you want?" Mia asked lightly as she continued to clip her toe nails.

Across her bed sprawled Nikki, damp hair wrapped in a towel. She had marched into Mia's room some time ago and flopped on the bed, staring at the ceiling.

"Are you going out tonight, too?" Nikki sighed.

"Yes, Nik."

"I hate you."

Mia didn't skip a beat from her task. "It's not my fault you got a concussion."

Nikki sat up on her elbow. "But it is your fault you leave me all alone in this damn creepy house. You don't let me go anywhere or see anybody..."

"They weren't my orders, they were the doctor's. He said you should get plenty of rest. Don't try to make me out to be the bad guy. I can't take a day off just because you get bored."

"Well, take me with you then," Nikki insisted.

Mia leveled a look at her. "Trust me, you wouldn't want to go. It may be at a fancy bar, but it's still a work meeting. Even if you could go, you'd be bored to death. I will probably be bored to death."

"Well then at least let me have someone over, Mia! I'm going crazy by myself! I can still rest and have Rowen–"

"You can't honestly think for one minute I believe you'll get any rest if I left the two of you alone in my house!" Mia interrupted. "Rowen's been a ticking time bomb lately and your temper isn't much better. I don't think so. Plus I don't even know why you want to see him so bad. Did the whole conference fiasco get concussed right out of your head?"

Nikki said nothing but the flat look she gave Mia spoke volumes. Mia seemed oblivious, opening a small bottle of nail polish and focusing on getting her little toenail painted just right. The look continued until Mia finally sighed and glanced up.

"Yes, Nikki?" she said patiently.

"You know, you used to be this really nice person. Now you've got the cold heartless bitch routine down so well even I'm starting to buy it."

Mia actually winced.

"That wasn't very nice," Mia murmured.

Nikki sat up and thumped Mia's leg with her heel.

"Then stop it," Nikki told her. "Stop acting like this. Like you couldn't care less about anyone but me."

"Maybe I don't," Mia muttered, moving on to her next toe. Nikki snorted.

"Right. 'Cause you don't get that sad, scrunchy face every time you blow one of the guys off. Which you do, regularly it seems." Nikki plucked the bottle of nail polish away, forcing Mia's attention. "I have nothing better to do than people watch, well Mia watch, and they seem to be trying to talk to you. They call you…and I heard you tell Cye not to come around yesterday. Which was mean, by the way, because I was lonely. But they try. They're your friends…couldn't you act like it for a change? I know it bothers you. Keeping yourself away from them isn't what you truly want."

Mia stayed relaxed but her face was firm.

"No Nikki, being around them is what YOU truly want. Being around Rowen, that is. What I truly want is to move on with my life, away from theirs. Want I want is to not be the good little research girl that tags along and lets herself be rescued from monsters and bad guys in costumes. What I want is to be normal and sane, without having to look over my shoulder constantly. I'll do what I can for them, when they need it, but the chummy sidekick routine is over. I want my life back." She continued to paint her toenails.

Nikki looked appalled. "Is that how you're trying to justify yourself? Because even concussed, I remember you being the first to throw yourself in the fray. Don't blame how you're feeling on them. They didn't even know what was going on."

"Which was how it was supposed to stay," Mia replied absently. "Which was the whole point, remember? But things got complicated, it didn't quite go as planned, abut now everyone's moving on. Including me. I don't know why that bothers you so much, Nikki."

Nikki balled up her fists at her sides, trying to stay as calm as Mia. "Because you're not moving on, Mia. You're shut off in this tight little shell of denial, and it's making you act…"

"Like I don't feel guilty?" Mia supplied softly, eyes locked on Nikki's. "The way you think I should?"

The other woman flushed angrily, looking down.

"We should feel guilty," Nikki said. "We lied to them and tricked them and betrayed their trust over and over again, even if it was to protect them. It might have been right, but it was still wrong, Mia."

Mia squared her shoulders, her face taking on a flat expression, usually reserved for the Ronins.

"I don't feel guilty," she said coldly. "Even if you do, even if they all think I should, I still don't. I would do it all over again, no matter how much everyone got hurt. Because you and I and Cassie, we were expendable. We are expendable. The guys aren't. Wounded pride is a whole lot better than dead. I did what I had to do and now it's done. I'm not looking back, and I'm sure not going to let them make me feel guilty by hanging around. They're heroes, Nikki. They need to protect others. They need to be surrounded by the wounded and the weak. It makes them who they are." At this Mia took a tight breath.

"But I'm not wounded and I'm not weak, I will not live my life being protected when I don't have to be. It's not who I am."

Nikki opened her mouth to say something, then she shut it again. Mia wasn't done.

"If you need to talk to Rowen, then that's your deal Nikki. But out of respect for my home and for me, please don't push it now. They don't understand where I'm coming from, and because of who they are they never will. So I just don't want them around."

With that Mia headed for her wardrobe, ending the conversation. Nikki quietly got up and left Mia's bedroom.

Mia emotionlessly hefted herself into a tight, black dress and set about applying her makeup. She paused as she moved to put in her earrings and gave herself a good look over in the mirror. Staring herself eye to eye she once again wondered things that only she had wondered to herself. Then her stare hardened again.

"I'm not sorry," she told her reflection. "I'm not."

* * *

It wasn't the brightest idea that they had ever had, but once it had been brought up, they just couldn't resist. So the couch had been pushed to the far wall, the television had been unplugged and scooted sideways, and the coffee table was now in the kitchen. Instead of a neatly organized living room, it now resembled a sparring ring. Sofa cushions and throw pillows made a nice if penetrable barrier that neither Sage nor Ryo seemed to be doing very well at staying inside. At the current moment a blonde head, two different shoulders, one foot, and half of Wildfire's rear end were technically out of bounds. The grappling position that managed to produce this was probably not one of their brightest ideas either. But neither Sage nor Ryo were the giving up types.

"You know, if any of the other guys walked in right now we'd never hear the end of this," Sage commented between grunts as Ryo's elbow slowly wedged its way into his gut. Ryo's response was intermittent as he fought to get a better hold and free himself from Sage's iron grip.

"Don't know…hey that hurts! They would recognize this for what it is...argh…it's just training."

Sage sighed and increased the pressure, bringing Ryo's face dangerously close to his lap.

"This does look a bit off color, Ryo," he said before hissing when Ryo's elbow worked its way into a cluster of nerve endings.

"If you're worried about your image, Sage, you're welcome to tap out," Ryo grinned between winces of pain.

"It's not my rep I worry about," Sage smirked as he twisted to the left and applied even more pressure down on Ryo's back and neck. Anyone else but one of them would have been in severe pain at this point, possibly injured and unable to continue the match. But Ryo was just as strong as Sage was, more so maybe. They never really tried to find out. It was enough that they trained together and that they followed him into battle. Sage didn't need to know if he could best Ryo in training. When the true fighting started Ryo's raw power had always blown them all away. Until Sage had met Ryo he had always believed that technique would beat out strength anytime it counted. But Ryo was different…he didn't need what the rest of them needed.

Sage privately felt that their team training had always been for the team and not for Ryo. They always fell back on what they learned together. Ryo always fell back on himself and no one else. On some deep level that intimidated Sage, and it left him feeling a sense of awe that he shouldn't feel with one of his own. But being Sage he never let it show. Just because Ryo was one of his own personal, if unspoken, heroes it didn't mean he would go easy on him. Sage really really didn't like to lose.

"I'm not the one trying to impress anyone," Sage told Ryo smugly.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ryo demanded, his voice muffled from the fact his face was now shoved against Sage's thigh.

"Well, you know…I don't have my eye on anyone specific that I wouldn't want to embarrass myself in front of…oh hey Robyn!" Sage added cheerfully. Ryo's head snapped up, startled and instantly flustered, his momentary break in concentration exactly what Sage needed to break out of the hold and send Ryo face first into the carpet.

Ryo instantly bounced back up, fire in his eyes at being tricked. Sage looked hardly concerned, and folded his arms with an air of triumph.

"I trust I made my point." He then got to his feet. "Now, if you would be so kind..."

Ryo sighed. He knew to what Sage was referring. It had already been decided that the loser of the match would be returning the furniture to its rightful place on their own. As Ryo moved to assemble pillows and slide the couch, Sage seated himself at his desk.

"There was no honor in this victory and you know it, Sage," Ryo grunted. The thing was a fold out, heavier than a normal couch. Sage wasn't Ryo's favorite person at the moment.

"Psychological warfare, my friend," Sage replied as he adjusted his glasses and looked over his bills. "I outsmarted you with a very simple ploy. If you had been more focused, you wouldn't have fallen for it and the outcome may have been different. But you did and as such, was your downfall. My victory is valid."

Ryo soundlessly mimicked the last of Sage's statement. He hated it when the blonde slipped into "scholarly mode". He must have been reading one of his beloved classic European novels again.

"Speaking of which," Sage then said as Ryo finished moving the table. "I haven't seen Robyn since the incident at her place. What about you, Ryo?"

"Me?" he asked looking up. "No, not really. I talked to her on the phone but... she's kind of closed down a bit. Kento says she doesn't talk much at work either. I think she's still a bit mad at all of us. I've decided to give her some space."

"Wise decision. She just needs a few more days and then she'll just pop right back to–"

Ryo backed up into Sage's desk, his eyes wide and his face pale as he stared straight ahead. Sage turned and followed his gaze, balking as well at what he saw. It was that same boy with the sunken face and the tattered clothes. The drenched apparition looked so real, it was practically dripping water on the floor. Then the young boy's ghost disappeared right before their eyes.

Sage tore of his glasses. "Ryo, do you know where Robyn is?"

Ryo was still staring at the now vacant spot on the floor. It took him a while to crank his face around. Sage's eyes were brilliant violet as they stared him down.

"Ryo. Where. Is. Robyn."

* * *

It was frightening to be reminded how easily everything unraveled when one wasn't looking.

Robyn wasn't answering her home phone and she wasn't at the restaurant with Kento. In fact she had left earlier than she normally did. Kento called Cye, who hadn't heard from her either, while Sage and Ryo checked her apartment. It was all in order, as if nothing was wrong. No Robyn. It was harder getting a hold of Rowen, but he had no further information on her whereabouts. Everyone split up to investigate her normal hang outs. Going to the police was out of the question. She had only been missing for a few hours. Systematically, each one of them kept calling her place, hoping against hope that Robyn would wander home anytime now. She never did.

The group congregated again outside Robyn's apartment near sunset. They were running out of options.

"You're sure she's in trouble," Cye said, his handsome face drawn and serious. "You know this for a fact."

Sage looked at Cye, holding his gaze. "I know," he confirmed. Then Sage seemed to slump. "I just don't know why or how she's in trouble."

There was an uneasy silence as they all looked at each other. There were several possibilities of what might have happened to Robyn, but none of them wanted to be the one to voice those possibilities. Finally Ryo's temper snapped and he turned, punching wall angrily.

"This is stupid!" Ryo growled. "We just have to think. All this started because we saw–I don't even know the words to describe what we saw. But it's got to have something to do with it!"

"Maybe," Cye speculated. "But maybe not. It could have been a warning of something completely different. We have no way of knowing the difference."

"Well LOOK at all of us, Cye," Kento argued. "It feels like something's wrong, doesn't it?"

"Did anyone think to check if Mia and Nikki were okay?" Rowen spoke up for the first time, voice unusually soft.

Another uneasy glance between them had Ryo pulling out his cell phone. He dialed a number and let it ring. After two rings a female voice answered. Mia reassured Ryo that both her and Nikki were alright and accounted for. The relief when Ryo hung up was palpable, although it didn't answer any of their questions about Robyn.

"Back to square one," Sage sighed.

"Well think everyone," Cye insisted. "Has Robyn done or said anything lately that may let us know where she might have gone?"

"Has anyone even SEEN her lately?" Sage cut in.

They all looked at Kento.

His eyes widened a bit when he realized they were now counting on him, of all people, to come up with the next plan of action.

Furrowing his brows in thought, Kento crossed his arms in front of his chest, thinking back on how Robyn had been acting lately. She had been kind of off, but that was nothing new for her. Normal Robyn behavior changed often. But this morning she had asked some odd questions. About facing his fears. Kento had been so caught up in his own thoughts that he hadn't dwelled too long on what that meant to her, only to himself. But if Robyn had been talking about facing her own fears…that narrowed it down considerably.

And why exactly had she asked him about it? Was she inviting him somewhere? If so, what exactly was she referring to if she were referring to a fear the two of them had in common?

Almost instantly after asking himself that question, Kento knew the answer. The thought of Robyn going there again, of her going there alone, made his blood run cold.

* * *

It was all the way across town. Even driving as fast as Kento was, with Sage's car hot on his tailpipe, the ride seemed excruciatingly long. As they turned up an old road, Kento could see the building coming closer like a dark, rising fog. It looked even more sinister in the fading light and Kento felt a chill despite the warm summer afternoon.

It had been years since he had given that old house any thought. So many other things were vastly more prominent in his mind when it came to the dark shadows that haunted his soul. This one hardly merited his idle musings. But seeing that old house again and standing in its shadow; he remembered it all. The burnt out fire place, the warm, dry smell, the cracked mirror at the end of the hall; it all came rushing back with unnerving clarity. And then the cars screeched to a stop.

Kento hesitated.

They all rushed the house, but Cye had been the fastest. It was his foot that touched the concrete steps first as he threw himself into the door. It gave easily under his strength and the group piled into the house. The five of them looked around, but despite the unusual chill in the air, the place looked empty and undisturbed.

Kento was last, but he still managed to see the yawning hole in the floor where the stairs should have been. After it had collapsed on himself and Robyn that night, they had never been touched since. Nothing in the house had changed since high school. It was as if the memory had been left on pause, waiting for Kento to return.

"Robyn! Where are you?" Cye's sharp voice cut through the stillness.

"There's no one here!" Ryo barked, his agitation clear in his voice. "We drove all the way out here when we should have stayed in town looking for her."

"No," Sage countered lowly. He was crouched; muscles tense, eyes sharp and scanning the dim light that filtered through dirty windows. "Something's here. Something isn't right with this place. I can feel it."

"Kento," Rowen then spoke. "You've been here before. Where do we look?"

Kento was baffled. Again they were asking him. Coming up with the plan wasn't his job. Fighting when the bad guy was in clear sight was his job. But again, he tried to offer what he could.

He looked around the house again, concentrating. The only place he and Robyn really went was up the stairs. Robyn definitely wouldn't be up there. There was no physical way to get up to the second floor now that the stairs had collapsed. The only thing he remembered from the ground floor was that he thought he saw something standing in the doorway of the parlor room.

The door way that, Kento suddenly noticed, was closed despite the fact no one else had been in this place since the last time he was there.

"Check there," he pointed to the closed door.

The second it was suggested, Ryo raced for it. The door knob wouldn't turn, but that hardly stopped Wildfire. He slammed all his strength into it and the door flew open. The second he saw what was inside, he froze. The others shouldered in around him, but stopped when they were treated to the eerie sight.

There was Robyn. She stood in the middle of an old, dusty room. It was mostly empty with only a few scraps of decaying furniture and wall hangings here and there. A faded yellow light feebly leaked in from a couple of boarded windows, but it was still heavily shadowed inside. Robyn stood motionless, her profile visible to them and made no move that she acknowledged their entrance.

It was the other presence in the room that had stopped the Ronins in their tracks. A little Japanese girl in a white, tattered kimono stood eye to eye with Robyn, each staring at the other. The girl looked young, about ten years old. In order to look Robyn in the face, she was floating almost an entire foot from the floor. Her torn clothing billowed out from her body which glowed with an unearthly blue light and the entire apparition, though appearing solid, was transparent enough that the Ronins could see through her to the other wall.

Finally, Cye found his voice and called out Robyn's name.

She didn't move. The phantom girl, however, swung her head in their direction. The neck rotated awkwardly and, when she was looking at them, it appeared to be broken. The chilled air began to swirl with power as the whites of the ghost's eyes suddenly turned black.

The second Sage entered the room, he had been aware of two powers; one holding the other one at bay. At the sound of Cye's voice, the balance began to shift and he could feel the other one taking over.

A hideous shriek filled the room and the Ronins were forced into action as they felt a cold power almost physically trying to push them out. They each donned their subarmor and Ryo led the rush into the room. He dashed straight for Robyn, grabbing her by the shoulders and physically hauling her away from the enraged apparition. Only then did he feel Robyn snap out of whatever trance she was in and she instantly started flailing against his attempts to save her. He couldn't hear what she was screaming at him above the howling as the other Ronins stood back to back, forming a protective circle around him.

The power stirred more and the Ronins could feel a tangible rage build in the room; so much so that the very floor beneath them began to shake.

"We've got to get out of here! Now!" Kento barked.

"What?" Cye called above the noise.

A giant, invisible hand seemed to suddenly sweep them all up and send the group off their feet into the far wall. Robyn was the only one left standing.

As Sage fought to get to his feet, he could feel the two powers in the room again and he could feel the second power fighting again for the dominance it used to have. He stared wide eyed at Robyn who was still standing strong despite the swirling energy and inspiration hit him.

That second power wasn't hers, was it? Even if it wasn't, he had to use his own powers to get control.

Ignoring Ryo who was trying to get his team mobilized for another attack, Sage got to his feet and concentrated on harnessing all his spirit energy in controlling and holding back the dark energy in the room. The second he began, he could feel the entity zero in on him.

In the blink of an eye, the apparition of the little Japanese girl appeared several feet in front of him. Then, right before Sage's eyes, it changed in appearance. It grew into a grotesque form with bent limbs and hanging, black chunks from a gnarled frame. Sage's stomach lurched in fear. This wasn't what he was expecting. This wasn't a sad, lost soul who could not let go of this world after they had died. This was of demon origin. Something dark and sinister that had never lived in the first place.

The thing reared up and rushed him and Sage was overcome with an unspeakable cold. He immediately started to hyperventilate; unable to get enough air in his lungs. Inside, he felt Halo's power instantly reacting to the dark presence and send a burst of powerful light to shoot it out of him. Sage fell to his knees gasping for air. Rowen was instantly at his side, asking him if he was okay. Sage grabbed Rowen's shoulder and pulled himself to his feet. Now wasn't the time to be weak. They weren't finished yet.

By now, the power was building to its peak. Invisible forces were throwing them around like rag dolls. What few articles of furniture were in the room were being hurled at them at violent speeds. Kento had tried to deflect and break most of it, but Cye already had a nasty gash on his forehead.

Ryo was beside himself with anger and helpless frustration. He couldn't fight this. There was nothing solid, nothing visible to attack. It was an entire room against him, trying to hurt his friends and he couldn't do anything to stop it. They couldn't win here. They needed to get Robyn and get out. But she was standing in the thick of it and, it seemed, doing nothing to help them rescue her. And the closer they got to her, the more they were attacked. Maybe Robyn couldn't move and that thing was keeping her there.

"Let her go, now," Ryo said through clenched teeth. He stepped forward, pushing heavily against the invisible force that was trying to hold him back. The temperature dropped and the windows began to rattle violently in answer. Ryo took another step forward and called his armor. As the metal wrapped around his body, the look in Ryo's eyes had become feral.

"Let her go or I burn this whole place to the ground," Ryo promised quietly, the heat of his armor hitting the cold air and causing steam to rise. The whole house was trembling now in furious rage.

Ryo opened his mouth to give Wildfire the command, but a cold mass of power swept the room and Rowen and Kento went crashing into him, sending all three into a broken mirror, shattering it.

Sage saw it happen and he heard, above the wail of darkness, Robyn's shrill voice call out to them. It was the first time she had made a move to notice the danger they were in. More than any other Ronin, Sage could see the power in the room as it swirled around. And he could see a hollow epicenter where Robyn was standing. Before, they had all thought that center was where Robyn was being held prisoner. But now, as Sage saw Robyn's attention turned to her friends, the bubble around her shattered and he realized it had, instead been a protective field. A field that was now gone and left her far more vulnerable than they were.

The second Robyn was distracted, she was down on the ground, gasping for air and clawing at some invisible weight that was pressing against her lungs. The pressure released only to have something grab her hair and drag her soundlessly across the floor and then up the wall, pinning her there.

Cye jumped up to her rescue, swiping at the invisible force. His fist hit nothing but air. However, whatever hold was on Robyn disappeared and they both landed on the ground with Cye positioning her protectively behind him.

"Cye!" Ryo barked at him. "Get Robyn out of here now! I'm taking this place out!"

The heat from Wildfire's armor was tangible in the room, pushing the icy air out. The house shuddered and shrieked, the windows in every room simultaneously shattering.

Cye turned to Robyn and something thick and red flicked on his face. He stared at Robyn whose eyes were wide in abject horror as long gashes appeared on her face and arms right before his eyes. She cried out and doubled over in pain. Cye could see slashes of red on her back as blood soaked into her shirt.

Cye was frozen. Robyn disappeared and all he could see before him was a blonde woman, bleeding and crying in pain. The wounds were so much like Cassie's. It was happening all over again. He just wanted to die. He wanted to die instead of anyone else, just so everyone would be safe. Just so he wouldn't have to see all that blood any more.

"Cye! Snap out of it!" Kento yelled, shouldering him out of his trance and grabbing Robyn. "We've got to get out of here now! Ryo's fit to blow this whole place apart!"

Kento picked Robyn up and ran for the door. It swung shut to lock him in, but Kento burst right through it, taking the doors right off its hinges. Cye moved to follow and stumbled on his shaky legs. Rowen grabbed him before he fell and whisked him out through the open doorway.

"Ryo! Do it!" Sage cried as he stood by the door way, ready to jump in with Halo if the situation called.

Fire exploded from Ryo's armor, liquid flame running down his arms and across his chest. Even the other Ronins flinched from the sound of his voice calling to Wildfire and the sudden, overwhelming heat. Ryo raised his hand and pointed it at the ceiling, a small spinning inferno gathering in his palm. He really was going to burn the whole place down around them.

Kento didn't look back as he darted from the house, the slim girl clasped tightly to him. The night air hit his face as he ran, taking her as far away from the house as he could without losing eyesight of it. Then he sank to the ground, shuddering and panting. He shifted Robyn away from his chest to check her injuries. Blood had smeared over her face and down her neck. It was up her arms and soaking through her shirt and jeans. It was everywhere, making it impossible to tell where the wounds were and how deep they were. The sight made Kento sick to his stomach and he fought the urge to throw up right there on the grass.

"Oh God! Robyn!" Cye's shrill voice called behind his shoulder. It was full of panic as well from the sight of all the blood.

"Is she breathing, Kento?" Rowen's voice joined in. "We have to stop the blood!"

"Let me go." Robyn came to life and gave Kento a strong shove in the chest, pushing out of his arms.

Despite their worst fears and how much blood they could see, Robyn didn't appear to be dying. She pulled herself out of Kento's grasp and stared wide eyed at the house. With a sound of frustration, she punched the ground and easily got to her feet. Blood was still dripping down from the cuts on her face. It dribbled into one eye, but Robyn kept her gaze dead set on the house as the sound of exploding and shattering glass rocked it to its very foundations.

The house was completely engulfed in flames silhouetting the forms of two figures as they walked towards her. Both Ryo and Sage were out of their subarmor, but both looked ready to be back in it instantly if need be.

"We had to take care of something," Ryo said darkly. Their leader looked livid, and that look only increased when he saw the wounds on Robyn.

Robyn, however, was mirroring his anger when Ryo approached her.

"What the hell did you just do?" she demanded. "In fact, what the hell are all of you doing here?"

"We came to save your ass, Robyn," Kento shot back. "Are you insane? What made you want to go back into that place?"

Ryo forcefully grabbed her arm. "That's what I want to know. What did you think you were doing out here? You almost got killed!"

Robyn's arm was slick from blood and she easily pulled it out of Ryo's grasp.

"No," she corrected. "YOU almost got me killed by coming here. I didn't need you to save me! I wasn't in any trouble until you distracted me!"

Sage's expression momentarily looked thoughtful, but Ryo looked ready to blow.

"You expect me to believe that!" Wildfire shot back. "What is wrong with you?! You're not invincible, Robyn! You can't just go into a dangerous situation and not tell anyone! What if we aren't able to find you next time?"

"I didn't WANT you to find me, Ryo!" Robyn retorted. She motioned quickly with her arm, splattering small droplets of blood on Ryo's chest. "This was none of your business! Don't you dare start lecturing me about what I should and shouldn't be doing with my own life!"

Ryo shook with barely contained rage, clutching his trembling fists at his sides. It was all he couldn't do to not grab Robyn and give her a good shake.

"What are you saying?! That you want to die? How selfish can you be? What about the rest of us? Doesn't it matter to you that you scared us all half to death? That we risked our lives for you? Do we not matter to you at all?"

Robyn opened her mouth to reply, and then shut it again. Her fists were also clenched at her sides. She looked him in the eyes and then snapped her head around in Kento's direction.

"Take me home," she told him.

Kento blinked at her. "Are you sure, Robyn? Maybe you should have Sage look at you first or we could take you to a hosp–"

"I said take me home or I'll start walking there myself!"

* * *

Kento didn't say anything about it, but deep down he did not appreciate Robyn getting blood all over the interior of his car. He also didn't appreciate how Robyn shot them down and told them she didn't want to talk every time one of them tried to say something to her. He really had no idea what was going on with her and why she did what she did and he was getting just as sore as everyone else about it.

Poor Cye, he was still shaking over the shock of it all. Robyn didn't even seem to notice it. That also rubbed Kento the wrong way. Ryo was right. They did put their lives on the line for her and all she was thinking about was herself.

When he pulled up to her apartment, Robyn gave him a hasty thanks for the ride and got out of the car. Kento threw a look to Cye and got out as well. She wasn't going to chase them away from this anymore. It was time they talked and, now that she was home, she didn't have anywhere else to run from them.

* * *

Sage had tailed them the entire way and also got out of his car with intent to follow as Robyn climbed the stairs to her apartment. Ryo got out after him, not looking as enraged as he had at the house. The ride had calmed him. Ryo was one of those people whose temper flared right away and went away just as fast. Now his true feelings were coming out. He had been afraid of losing her. And he had been hurt that she had not confided in him about what was going on.

Rowen, on the other hand, seemed to have taken Ryo's place in the temper department. Rowen was one of those people who had to slowly work himself into a rage. And he had done just that all the way back to Robyn's apartment. All he talked about was how dare Robyn put herself in danger like that and how could she treat them that way when they came to rescue her and how could she not tell them where she was and make them worry.

Now Rowen was fit to be tied and almost beat Kento up the stairs so he could give her a piece of his mind.

Robyn didn't even try to keep them out. She went straight to the bathroom to grab herself some cleaning cloths and let all the Ronins file inside her apartment as they pleased. Her attention turned to rinsing the drying blood off her face and arms. She hissed as the hot water hit the now burning lacerations on her skin. As much as she rinsed, the towels still had pale red marks as she dried herself off. She wasn't ready to look at the damage that was caused under her clothes just yet.

She turned from the bathroom mirror to go retrieve her first aid kit and found Rowen standing right in her way.

"You owe us an explanation," Rowen informed her, his voice icy.

Robyn just gave him a bland look and moved past him to the hall closet where she found her modest first aid kit and took it with her to the dining room table. Most of the Ronins were still there, gathered around the table, waiting for her–but no one sitting down. Robyn ignored them all and began digging through her kit for bandages and ointment.

Rowen stalked up to her standing mere inches away.

"Didn't you hear what I said?" he demanded, a bit angrier than before. "You owe us all an expiration of what you were doing there!"

Robyn closed her eyes, taking a deep breath as she put her bandages away and closed her kit again.

"I don't owe you anything," she said levelly.

"How do you figure that?" Rowen challenged, pressing one palm to the table. "We just risked our lives to save you. How is it you don't owe us anything?"

Robyn opened her eyes and stared hard at Rowen. "Because it doesn't involve you. It was personal and you weren't invited."

"Robyn, this isn't funny," Kento stepped in before Rowen could work himself up even more. "We hunted all over the city for you. You just disappeared and we had no idea what happened to you. We were worried you would get hurt and you did." His eyes filled with sadness as he looked her over. "None of us want anything to happen to you."

Robyn sighed. "Look, I'm sorry you worried, but I can't help you. There are things I have to do alone. I can't have you help. That's why I didn't tell you about it."

Ryo's fist hit the table. "That's not acceptable," he told her, his voice even, temper now in check. "You risking your life because you think it's personal is not acceptable."

Before Robyn could retort, Cye slid next to her, grabbing her hand, trying to keep everyone calm.

"Robyn, if there is something you need to do, you can still tell us about it. We're your friends. You shouldn't keep secrets from us when we can help you."

Robyn pulled her hand away and stood up. "You did not just say that to me," she said and began backing away from all of them. "You all are such hypocrites. How dare you–any of you– get after me for keeping secrets when that's all you have done since I got here?"

"You don't understand, Robyn," Kento said. "There are certain things we don't tell you because–"

"Because it's personal," Robyn cut him off, her voice becoming more heated. "Because it's none of my freaking business. Because even if I did know about it, you don't believe I can help. But if I do the same thing, I've done something wrong! And I have all of you to lecture me on it. Tell me how that is fair."

"It isn't about fair," Sage said. "It's about you thinking only of yourself when you hide these things from us."

"Oh, so now I'm wrong AND I'm selfish!?" Robyn barked back, her anger clearly showing now. "Since Sage said it, it must be true! And since all of you are so perfect, none of you need to abide by the rules like the rest of us do! I'm always wrong and you're always right, is that it?"

Rowen, who was standing closest to her, reached out to take her arm. "Robyn, you need to calm down."

"EXCUSE ME?!" Robyn shrieked, looking at Rowen with wide eyes. "How DARE you of all people tell ME to calm down, Rowen Hashiba!" She shoved him into the wall. "You come into my home, blow up in front of all your friends and shove all your little insecurities on everyone else! Then you have the gall to lecture me on what you think I owe you and how you think I should be acting?!

"Well let me tell you what." She turned and stepped back so she could address them all. "You are all so broken in makes me sick. How can I expect to rely on you for anything? You can't even keep it together amongst yourselves! I say one little word wrong and you all fall apart. It's pathetic! I don't know what happened to you, but my hell, take it like men! How can you crumble so easily? There are FIVE of you! It just baffles me!"

The room was filled with stark, surprised silence.

Robyn took a breath to steady her voice.

"The way you guys are now, I would never call for your help on anything," Robyn said softly. "You're not capable of saving anyone. I want you out."

They all just stood there. Ryo took one step towards her, looking helpless.

"But Robyn... you're still bleeding everywhere. Let us–"

Robyn's temper flared again.

"I know how to put on a freaking band aid, Ryo! Believe me! GET OUT!"

Only when the Ronins had all left her apartment and Robyn had heard them drive away, did she finally break down. Falling to her knees, she cried in short, painful sobs on the seat of her chair, fighting it all the way. She didn't want to cry, but it hurt so badly.

She wanted them to be right. She wanted them to be steadfast and brave and sturdy and she could be wrong and they would always be right. But they weren't that way anymore and they were only right in their thought of assuming she could not help them. And she fervently hoped as she cried that she had helped push them into searching to fix whatever it was that was broken.

* * *

Kento stormed into his house, kicked off his shoes, and stomped into the kitchen. His face was a thundercloud, rare for the usually happy Ronin, and he didn't have the slightest desire to hide it from his younger siblings. Thankfully the only one still up was his mother. Mama Fuan was in front of the counter, covered in flour as she happily went about making pies. She spared a glance for her eldest as he came into the room, gave her a brief perfunctory kiss on the cheek and flopped down into one of the dinette chairs.

"Rough night, hon?" she asked, hands deftly forming a lattice crust for the top of a blueberry pie. Kento grunted in response, slumping. His mother finished trimming the crust and tucked the pastry into the oven. Then she set about cutting a piece of apple pie from a cooling pan. She placed it on the table in front of her son and sat down across from him.

"Want to talk about it?"

Kento sighed and picked at his dessert.

"I'm a bit stumped on what to do, Ma," he admitted with a frown. "I always thought what I was doing was right. It's how I've always lived. And then suddenly, I get thrown this curve ball and I'm not so sure any more. Robyn said some stuff to me today and at first, it made me mad. And then it got me thinking. And I'm not really sure what I think."

Kento's mother stopped what she was doing and sat down at the table across from him. "What did she say to you?"

Kento chose his words carefully. His mother didn't need to know all the details.

"Well, we got after her because she disappeared for a while and didn't tell anyone where she was going. Then we found out she went to... a dangerous part of town. And if she had been seriously hurt, we never would have known where she was or what happened to her."

Kento left out the part that Robyn did get hurt. The last thing he needed was for his mother to go racing off to Robyn's to see all those marks for herself. Then he would never know how to answer the questions that would surely come after that.

"So what did Robyn say to you when you told her this?" his mother asked.

Kento furrowed his brows. He had a hard time remembering it word for word. He just remembered how much it hit home.

"Well, she told us it was none of our business and she needed to take care of some personal things. She also said some things about the way we've been treating her lately made her not want to tell us what she was doing."

His mother gave a thoughtful look. "Well, I do see how you boys are around her. Robyn is a very independent woman and she's been used to living alone. Having you boys crowding to know what she's doing all the time is probably a nuisance to her. But it isn't exactly smart of Robyn to go into dangerous situations by herself, and even if it isn't dangerous, it's very selfish to just disappear on people that care about you."

"So then... who's right?" Kento wanted to know. "We went to find her because we don't want her to get hurt. How can she get mad at us for that?"

His mother got up to check on her pies. "Sweetie, it's not about who's right. It's about communication and staying open with each other."

Kento threw his fork on his plate in frustration. "That's just it. There is no communication. There's just pretending everything's normal until everything goes all to hell…um heck. Sorry Ma. I just don't know why it's so hard for her to let us take care of her," he said unhappily. "We just want her to be safe. That's what we do; we keep those around us safe. So why fight us every step of the way?"

His mother was quiet for a long moment before speaking. Then she turned and looked at him.

"I know you, Kento Rei Faun. I know you have a good heart and you are always trying to help others. You are strong and you will gladly use that strength for those you care about without a second thought. But bearing the burden of others isn't always what is best for them, love. Letting someone else carry you makes you weak."

"But she _is_ weak!" Kento exclaimed. "And she's constantly in trouble. Of course we try to protect her. She needs us to protect her."

Mama started to wipe the counter, speaking carefully. It wasn't often that her oldest was this distraught and he usually wasn't very receptive when he was.

"She needs it or you do?" his mother asked simply.

"I'm not letting someone else I care about slip through the cracks because I'm too chicken to force them to let me help," Kento growled in frustration. "Not Robyn. I'm not doing this again."

"This really isn't about Robyn is it, Kento?" she stated. Kento closed his mouth, picking up his fork again to pick at his plate.

"No, I guess not. I guess it's really about me," he admitted glumly. "I just don't know how to stand aside and let my friends get hurt. None of us do. And it makes me so mad…"

"But she didn't get hurt right?"

Wrong, but he couldn't tell his mother that. So he just shook his head. His mother smiled at him.

"If I had always treated you that way, Kento, always coddling you and never letting you do anything for yourself, you would not have become the strong young man I see before me. You can always be there for the people you care about, but you can't always do everything for them. You can still be strong, but you have to be strong WITH people, not for people. Otherwise, you're not letting them live and you're doing more harm than good."

She moved about the kitchen, cleaning up the remaining flour from the counter. Kento sat quietly, scraping his plate and mulling over what she had said. An odd expression crossed his face and he looked to his mother.

"Mom, you remember Mia, right?"

"Of course. She was such a dear. I've missed her, she never comes around anymore."

Kento cleared his throat and looked down at the table.

"Was she…I mean, did we ever…?" he didn't seem to know how to ask. His mother turned around and gave him a sad smile.

"Mia was a strong woman, Kento. Gentle and kind, but very strong."

"I always wanted to protect her," Kento murmured. "I know she was strong, but I was stronger. She knew it too. But she wouldn't let me…"

His mother finished wiping off the counter and washed her hands, turning off all but one of the lights in the kitchen. She went to her son and ran a hand through his hair soothingly.

"The road goes both ways, Kento. People who love you will want to do what they can to keep you safe as well. And it's unfair to you to be sheltered from something that you need to face for yourself. Both of you need to stop pretending you are the only ones who are strong. You need to talk to her."

Kento nodded and then raised his head. "Wait, her? Which one are you talking about, Mom?"

His mother just smiled at him and left the kitchen.

* * *

The bar was crowded and thick with heavy smoke. Mia sat demurely at Masahiro's right, listening politely to the conversation around her. She wasn't really paying much attention, even though she nodded agreement at the right times and laughed in appropriate intervals. Frankly she could care less about which investment banker got caught sleeping with whose secretary and Mia found the current subject matter quite inappropriate. There might have been two other women seated at the exclusive table in the corner with the group of men, but it was most definitely a boy's club. But it was a club made of the big boys, and the bar owner himself had come over earlier to make sure the "meeting" was provided with everything they needed. Mia had spent the better part of three hours fighting the urge to either roll her eyes in disgust or just get up and leave. If ever she needed an attack by evil warlords, it was now.

"Right, Mia?" Masahiro's voice cut through her thoughts and Mia blinked, having been caught not paying attention.

"Umm…of course," she lamely tried to cover. Masahiro's face scrunched into a disapproving frown at her inattention, but he then covered it as well with a slightly drunken smile.

"It seems my beautiful date is growing weary, gentlemen," Masahiro stated. "Perhaps a moment to freshen up, Mia?"

The dismissal was obvious. So was the irritation in her eyes as she struggled to keep her pride in check.

"Please excuse me," Mia spoke softly, rising and removing herself from the table. Masahiro watched her leave, a smug expression on his face. Mia kept her head up as she stepped down a set of stairs from the platformed VIP section. She turned the corner into the sloping isle that led behind the row of tables towards the bathroom. A very large man stood blocking her path. Mia gasped as she almost ran into him.

"Are you really going to let him talk to you like that?" Kento asked her softly, gazing up at the back of her table with thinly veiled dislike. Mia was thrown off already from her dismissal, and she flushed with embarrassment that Kento had watched it happen. She quickly tried to recover her dignity, turning the conversation around on him.

"Why are you here? How did you find me?" she asked briskly. Kento just looked at her with those gorgeous eyes of his, then back at the table.

"I tried to call your cell first, then I tried the house. Nikki told me where you were. She said it was a business meeting…" His tone made it sound like he was doubtful. Mia rubbed her face wearily.

"It is, just one that requires me to be social more than business like," she explained, wondering why she was even explaining this to him.

"It still doesn't explain why you let him treat you like that, Mia," Kento stated, sounding angry and looking like he was struggling to control it.

"Kento, I really don't have time for this," she told him, more sharply this time. "The last thing I need right now is a scene. These are my coworkers. Now what was so pressing that you needed to track me down?"

She flinched inside at the coldness in her voice, and expected to see the hurt in his eyes from her words. She prepped herself for the fight she knew would come. Kento had never taken it well when someone had disrespected her. However he just quirked his mouth into a small smile.

"I won't make a scene," he told her, sounding as if he meant it. Mia glanced up at him in surprise.

"Really, I won't. This is your life, Mia, not mine. It's not my place to intervene."

Her jaw dropped. Kento coughed uncomfortably, suddenly looking unsure.

"Anyway the reason why I'm here is because I needed to ask you for help."

"What kind of help?" she asked suspiciously. Kento sighed deeply and seemed to slump a little, making him seem less huge, less strong.

"Something happened tonight. With Robyn, and we all…we kind of wigged out. We shouldn't have, but we got really scared."

"Is she okay?" Mia asked in concern. Kento nodded.

"Yeah, but she might not have been. And she made it pretty clear that us over reacting was what made it go as badly as it did. She got sliced up, Mia." Kento sucked in a tight breath, wondering if Mia would understand what he meant. Mia did. However the carefully schooled expression on her face kept him from knowing how she felt about it.

"Anyway," Kento pushed on, fighting to get this out. "The guys took it pretty hard. I mean, we all took it pretty hard. And we fell apart afterwards. Ryo and Cye are a mess. Actually we're all messes, if I'm going to be honest. And I know that you don't want to be around us right now, but we really all need to get together and talk about what happened before. You know, last winter. We just need some…closure."

Mia sighed and crossed her arms.

"Kento, I don't think that's a good idea. There's really not anything to say that will make you guys feel better. It's best to just move on, don't you think?"

Kento looked at her searchingly, then closed his eyes, speaking softly.

"We have to talk this out or we'll never get past it, and we can't do it without you. We need help, babe. Please."

Mia remained silent, undecided.

"I've tried," he said, voice rough. "Damn it, I've buried myself in my work, and I've left you alone like you wanted. I don't call…but this isn't just about me or you. Rowen's so spun he almost got himself and Nikki killed. Ryo's paranoid stalker boy and Cye's as cold as ice. Sage is just…lost. We need to get through this but we aren't getting better, we're getting worse. Maybe if we talked it out, with you and Nikki, then maybe we could understand why…why what happened had to happen. I just have to know _why_."

"You don't know what you're asking--" Mia started to say, only to be cut off.

"I see that you got lost on your way," Masahiro suddenly commented dryly from behind Mia's shoulder. He put his hand on her arm possessively and tightened his grip slightly too much. Mia didn't let herself flinch but the anger that burned in Kento's eyes made it obvious that the action had not gone unnoticed. _Here it comes_, she thought.

"Mia, go sit down," Masahiro said perfunctorily. He eyed Kento's simple clothes and a smug smirk touched his lips. "Let your friend go home and get some rest. It's a hard life being blue collar." From above, where the rest of the table now watched, several snickers could be heard.

"Not sure how he even got in here-" was muttered from one of them. Mia watched Kento struggle with his anger and win, and his hands stayed relaxed at his sides.

"Mia, please. The guys need this from you," Kento said even more softly, deliberately not lowering himself to the level of her date.

Masahiro snorted, his slight drunkenness making him bold.

"Need what from you, Mia?" Masahiro asked mockingly. "I wasn't aware that there was a line I would have to stand in once the evening was done."

Mia looked shocked at the insult, then immediately turned red. An actual snarl escaped from Kento's throat but he held himself still, eyes burning holes in Masahiro. The other man laughed openly.

"He's very nice, dear. Kind of like a pet pit bull on a chain. Now let's go." Masahiro took her arm and started to pull her back around. Mia however, jerked away angrily.

"No, I think I'm done here tonight," she told him in a flat voice. "You've had too much to drink. We can speak later."

"We can speak right now," Masahiro snapped, digging his fingers into her arm once more and yanking on her. Another snarl escaped Kento's throat but he still didn't move. Mia however did. She twisted in his grip and struck his arm with her free hand sharply. Her aim was right on, painfully hitting a cluster of nerves and Masahiro let go immediately, yelping. It was a move that Ryo had taught her but she had never had actually used it.

"Are you crazy?!" he snapped at Mia, but she just looked at him coldly.

"That's the least of my concerns, Masahiro. Sober up and apologize tomorrow. Good night." And with that Mia turned and left the club, her head held high. Kento followed at her shoulder. She looked at him once they were outside and she could see that he was so angry he was shaking. His jaw clenched and unclenched and his hands were fists. Kento looked beside himself. Mia put her hand on his muscled arm soothingly, trying to force aside her humiliation.

"Everything's fine, Kento," she told him. "Thank you for not making a scene."

"One more word," Kento snarled through gritted teeth. "One more thing and I would have murdered that son of a bitch."

Mia said nothing, but she kept her hand on his arm until the trembling eased. Finally he let out an explosive breath.

"Damn…okay, what were we talking about?"

Mia gave him a half smile.

"We were talking about talking."

"Yeah. That."

"Kento, are you okay?"

"Not really, Mia," he whispered. "I'm very not okay. None of us are."

Mia took a deep breath and pulled her hand away from Kento's arm. "I don't want to do this," she told him softly.

"I know." Kento gestured towards the still busy night club. "I didn't want to do that. What I wanted was to hurt him." _For even daring to touch you._

Mia closed her eyes and bowed her head. She remained silent for a moment, then she raised her head, eyes hard. All her walls were firmly in place. Kento admitted defeat inwardly. He'd known that this was a long shot.

"Bring them by tomorrow afternoon. I'll only do this once." And with that the gorgeous redhead turned on her heel and left him standing where he was, shocked and relieved and even more uncertain than he had felt in a very long time.

"Tomorrow, then," Kento acknowledged. He watched her go, hands in his pockets, wondering now what the hell were they all supposed to say to each other.

* * *

The girl had taken a long time to fall asleep. However a combination of exhaustion and loneliness left her in a deep slumber. Which made it so much easier to crawl through the window. 


	8. Chapter 8

**The Blinding Mask**

Chapter 8

"You're right, you know."

Robyn had answered her door on the second knock and there was Ryo on her doorstep. His black hair was messy, falling over tired eyes, and it looked like he hadn't gotten any sleep the night before. That wasn't surprising, considering how upset he had looked when Robyn had thrown the guys out of her place last night. The redhead watched him warily, not sure she was up for this conversation yet or for a close proximity to any of them. As if he intuitively understood this, Ryo remained in the doorway.

"Which part?" Robyn asked quietly, brushing her hair from her eyes. That action revealed the bandage she had on her forehead as well as further bandages peeking out of her sleeve.

Ryo let his eyes dart over the dressed wounds, but didn't say anything.

"The part where you said we were broken. We are. We really are..." Ryo lapsed into silence as he stared over her shoulder. His eyes were a million miles away and wherever he was right then, Robyn wasn't sure she wanted to know about it. He looked…haunted.

"Ryo," Robyn said quietly. "Are you sure this is something you want to talk about now?"

She had said some pretty rough things to them last night and even though she meant what she had said, it still didn't make it any easier knowing that she had hurt them. She was already over her anger at them for following her, but it didn't change the situation. Things had happened and things had been said that couldn't be ignored. And both knew the other had secrets they hadn't been willing to share. Bringing it all to light was difficult. Pulling those secrets from out of their dark caves would be harder still.

"Maybe you should go home and rest."

"I don't want to," Ryo replied in a gravelly voice.

Robyn sighed and moved away from the door, forcing Ryo to catch it himself if he wanted to keep it open. He took this as an invitation to walk in and shut the door behind him.

"So what do you want from me then?" Robyn asked as she wandered around the front room, not looking at him. "I can't really help you with this. I wasn't there. There is nothing I can--"

"White Blaze is gone," Ryo blurted, almost forcefully at her.

It was enough to stop Robyn in her tracks and she stared at him.

"I don't know what happened to him. It's just that battle-- he never came back. I don't know if he's dead or..."

Robyn slowly sat herself down on the couch, ready to listen.

"I miss him so much, and it's killing me to not know what happened," Ryo continued passionately. "And I can't TELL anyone! That--that THING nearly ripped Rowen's throat out. It tortured Mia and Nikki right under our noses. It KILLED Cassie. It changed all of us in a way that we'll never bounce back from. There's no way I can tell any of them that I just.... I just really miss my tiger."

The last statement was delivered softly. Ryo looked at her, his eyes glittering wetly, but stubbornly refusing to spill over. Robyn swallowed. His expression made her chest constrict with emotion, but she did her best to keep it down.

"I'm so sorry, Ryo."

Her voice made him lurch forward into the couch. He sat down with purpose, grabbing her wrists which were sitting in her lap. Robyn jumped at the sudden contact, but didn't move away.

"Ever since it happened, we've just been lost... broken, as you said," Ryo went on, watching her face. "Horrible things happened to us, to all of us and when it was over.." He paused for a moment, his brows knitting a bit in anger and frustration as he remembered that time when they had been forced to forget it all. When something gnawed at all of them and they were frantic to know why. "When it was over, we all tried to pretend it didn't happen. We wouldn't talk about it and we wouldn't admit that it had changed us so much."

Ryo's grip on her hands got tighter as he talked, but Robyn didn't try to break from his hold.

"We just kept existing pretending everything was okay, as if we thought if we acted like it didn't happen we would all go back to normal. But all it did was pull us all further apart. We stayed broken, Robyn. We never took a chance to heal. We just drove each other away. And when you came, we continued to pretend and we drove you away, too."

Ryo swallowed, his eyes moving away from Robyn's face to look down at her hands in his. "I don't want my friends to go through this anymore. I'm tired of everyone trying to get through this themselves. And so are they. Last night, you really pushed us to think about this and we're going to get together to talk about this later today at Mia's. We're going to face it together and then move on."

A smile chased away the concerned look that had been on Robyn's face. "That's great, Ryo. I'm so happy for you guys. I really hope it goes well for you and when you're done, I'll be here so you're welcome to--"

"I want you to come," Ryo insisted.

Robyn's expression instantly dropped. "What?" she asked flatly. "Ryo, I can't come to that. I shouldn't be there. It's not my business. I wasn't even there."

"I know," Ryo nodded. "But... we want you there. I think the guys would appreciate your support. And..."

The way that sentence dropped off chilled Robyn somehow.

"You don't know if it's over," she accused in a hushed tone.

Ryo stayed quiet and Robyn shook her head. "Man, this thing got you guys good, didn't it?"

Ryo didn't give an answer to the question and he didn't let go of her hand. "Please come. I feel.... like someone needs to be there who didn't have to live through it. We have to tell someone else. We have to live outside our little bubble before it swallows us all."

Robyn let out a noisy breath through her nose. "I see. Fine, I will be there."

Ryo nodded and released her hands as he stood up. The distance between them was more than literal. It was a distance Ryo feared he had wedged there with their secrecy and, he hoped, would mend itself as well after the day was through.

"Rowen said he'd come by and pick you up, if you agreed to go." Ryo ran a hand through his hair, seeming uncomfortable. "I kind of need to do something beforehand."

Robyn understandably had a confused look on her face to have one Ronin come in and beg her to come only to be told another was going to pick her up. But she accepted it and nodded. She would let them all have their way today.

"Rowen, huh? Alright, alright. Tell him I'll be here and I guess... I'll see you at Mia's."

"Yes you will," Ryo promised. "Thanks Robyn. You really have no idea, thanks so much!" And with that, Ryo was out the door, leaving Robyn to wait to see what the day would reveal.

* * *

"Kento? Are you up there?"

Cye's voice rang through the empty house as he paused at the bottom of the stairs. Quiet was virtually unknown to the Faun household, but no one had answered the door when Cye had knocked. He knew for a fact that Kento was home, although Cye wasn't used to not being greeted when showing up here.

"Kento?"

"Yeah, I'm here," came a gruff reply, muffled slightly. Cye headed up the stairs towards Kento's room. The door was partially closed, but Cye could see his friend sitting on his bed, elbows on his knees as he stared at his feet.

"Hey," Cye ventured lightly, trying to ignore the amounts of worry that were rolling off of Kento right now. "You about ready to go?"

Kento looked up, then ran a hand through his short hair. "Yeah, I guess so." But he didn't move. Cye waited a bit, then walked across the room and sat down next to the bigger man.

"You okay?" Cye asked quietly.

Kento darted a glance at him, then sighed heavily.

"I…just don't know what to say, you know? I asked for this, but the closer the time comes, the more I want to just not go. I've kept thinking these last several months that there was so much I wanted to say if I just had the chance to, and now that I have it, I just want to go to work and keep pretending everything's still okay."

Cye sat silently, just listening. He wondered if like him, Kento hadn't gotten to speak of any of his troubles with anyone.

"Plus, I just don't know if I can take a whole day of watching her…be like that."

"It hurts you," Cye acknowledged quietly. It hurt him to see this hard cold shell of a Mia, too.

"It fucking tears me to shreds," Kento whispered in a harsh voice. "It's…like she's dead to everyone and everything. And the worst part of it all is that instead of being glad we can all get some closure, all I can do is sit here, dreading what she'll say to me this time. How she'll say it, and how much more she'll manage to cut me up inside. Pretty selfish, huh?"

"There's a difference between selfishness and self preservation, Kento," Cye told him, squeezing his shoulder. Kento just stared at the carpet, his arm muscles bunching as he clenched and unclenched his fingers. Finally he sucked in a tight breath and looked up at Torrent.

"Maybe this will help her too," Kento said, forced optimism in his voice as he stood up. "Maybe this will help all of us."

Cye gave Hardrock an encouraging look, then rose as well. "We won't find out unless we try," he agreed. Together they headed out to face this day.

* * *

He only had an hour before he needed to be at Mia's. Ryo was pretty sure that it would be best if he got there at least before Rowen or Kento, to help keep things calm. Not that he believed that either man at this point would cause a problem. Kento had been the one to actually convince Mia of the necessity of this conversation, but it wouldn't be good to start things off with the kind of strain that existed between those four. Just because Rowen and Nikki's loud and violent way of expressing their feelings to each other overshadowed Kento passivity and Mia's icy silence, it didn't mean that there wasn't the potential of verbal conflict. If Ryo was there, he could make sure to head any problem off before they got started.

But there was something he had to take care of first.

The drive to the cabin was longer than he remembered, or maybe it was just that he had slowed down the last couple miles. But eventually there it was, the small log building that had been Ryo's private shelter and place of peace for more years than he could remember. He lost his tiger here a long time ago, but through the gift of another equally brave animal, his best friend had been returned to him. At the time, he couldn't have imagined being more grateful for anything in his life.

The road leading to the cabin was only dirt, so his feet barely made a sound as he climbed out.

Ryo stepped inside the cabin, looking around. He hadn't been here in awhile, his life had become so busy that he had given up on spending his free time out in the woods the way he longed to. Plus Blaze had been at Mia's, and he missed his best friend sorely during the week. Now that he was gone, Ryo could help but curse himself for not finding a way to keep his tiger with him. He hadn't been ready to lose him. Not then. Not like that.

Ryo moved through the cabin and out the back door, to where a small clearing overlooked the surrounding countryside. It was beautiful out here. Some of their best times had been here, just the two of them, him and Blaze. Maybe that was why he came here when he wanted to feel close again to his tiger. There had been nothing to bury, but here…he could close his eyes and almost believe he heard the rumbling right next to him. No one wanted to lose their family. No one wanted to have to grow up and face the world on their own two feet. No one wanted to have to stand alone.

He remained there as long as he could, eyes closed and remembering the good things. Taking strength from his memories.

"No one wants to stand alone, do they Blaze?" Ryo murmured softly to the wind. "But sometimes we have to." There was no response, but a hint of a smile touched Wildfire's mouth. Perspective could be such an incredible thing, and it always seemed to come to him here more than anywhere else. Ryo knelt on the ground and touched the soft grass. It bent beneath his roughened hand, an endless memorial to a friend he was having to learn to live without.

"I miss you, buddy," Ryo whispered. He could almost swear he heard a soft purring on the wind.

* * *

All morning Nikki had kept trying to pretend that she wasn't watching the driveway from the upstairs bedroom window. But by the time Ryo had pulled up, Nikki had given up pretending. Her nose was squashed to the glass as she tried to read both his and Mia's lips. The redhead had walked outside to greet Ryo, albeit with a tight expression. The two had spent a few minutes talking. Nikki couldn't hear what they were talking about, but she saw a look of confusion on Mia's face when Ryo admitted... something to her. He kept talking and Mia eventually got that look on her face to which Nikki recalled she would make when she was tolerating something she didn't like. What had Ryo asked of her?

Later, Ryo popped his head in, politely greeting her, but it had been awkward at best. After a few forced pleasantries, Ryo left her to herself. Nikki returned almost immediately to her position.

"Are you still Rowen watching?" Mia asked from the doorway as finally a green car pulled up, and three figures climbing out of it.

"Of course not," Nikki said, sounding offended even as she stared at the tall man climbing out of the driver's seat, a shock of blue hair making him impossible to mistake.

"Yeah right," Mia smirked. "Who's with him?"

"Sage. And…who is she?"

Nikki's face was pressed to the window as Rowen opened the door behind him and helped out a girl with shockingly bright red hair. Nikki's eyes narrowed.

"She?" Mia didn't sound surprised.

"Red hair, skinny. Standing next to Rowen like she owns him," Nikki described, trying to keep the irritation out of her voice.

"That would be Robyn," Mia answered simply. "Ryo said she might show up. He thought she needed to hear some of this." At that comment, Mia's gaze flattened. She obviously didn't agree, but it seemed it wasn't something she could stop now.

"Why?" Nikki demanded. "She wasn't even there! It's not her business. Who is she and how come I've never even heard of her before?"

"I don't know," Mia said honestly. "She's a friend of theirs from high school–practically family to Cye. She knows about the armor. I really don't know much about her myself. She was their friend, not mine." Her tone turned a bit thoughtful as she looked out the window with Nikki. "She wasn't here very long, but I got the impression they were close. However, as soon as she was gone, none of them mentioned her again. I really don't know why."

"Well why is she here for THIS?" Nikki demanded.

Mia sighed. "I don't know, Nikki. It wasn't my decision. Ryo insisted. I guess he's worried about her not being... prepared."

Nikki just snorted. "Yeah, cause the rest of us got that luxury."

She continued to watch out the window as the girl known as Robyn stared at the house. Nikki's eyes narrowed when she grabbed into Rowen's arm when he walked by, almost as if she was concerned about something.

"Seriously, does she have to hang off him like that? They aren't dating are they?"

Mia actually laughed at her.

"You sound jealous."

"Shut up."

"You're going to have to get used to it. Her relationship with them was like that. All of them were protective of her. They..."

"They were like that with you once," Nikki finished with a smug look. "And I'm the one that sounds jealous?"

"I have nothing to be jealous of, Nikki," Mia replied simply. Nikki raised an eyebrow as she continued to watch the figures outside. A second car had pulled up next to the first.

"So the fact that Kento's all over her now doesn't bother you in the slightest?"

Mia shot Nikki a dirty glare, but couldn't help herself from coming into the room just far enough that she could get a look outside as well. Sure enough, the strange girl was slapping Kento's wrists away while he was trying to... do something to her. Nikki wasn't sure.

Her attention was then drawn, as it often was, back to Rowen. As if he sensed her eyes on him, Rowen looked up, directly at the window. Their eyes met and Nikki's heart lurched. She jerked away from the window, then groaned as the quick motion sent her head aching. Mia was already on her way to the door.

"You probably should come down soon," Mia informed her as she left. "I don't have any plans on drawing this out. I would like to have everyone out in a couple hours."

Nikki said nothing, but she doubted that Mia would get her wish. Her friend left the room and Nikki stood up, glancing in the mirror to check her hair. It wasn't too great, considering the lumpy bandage still on her head, and the scratches from glass didn't help the look either. Groaning Nikki flopped herself down on the bed, listening to the muffled voice downstairs. Suddenly she was really nervous, and wasn't sure she wanted to do this.

"I wanted the company," she muttered to herself.

A quiet knock on the doorframe caught her attention. Nikki sat up, once more too fast when she saw blue hair, and groaned as she went dizzy. A hand on her arm steadied her until things stopped spinning. When she could focus once more, Nikki realized that Rowen was kneeling in front of her.

"Moved too quick," Nikki muttered embarrassedly. He said nothing, but everything about him spoke volumes. The wrinkled black hoodie only made him look paler, his hair wilder than normal. The dark circles around bloodshot eyes showed the lack of sleep. But it was the way he was looking at her, so filled with self loathing, that made Nikki forget that she was angry some girl had been hanging all over him.

"Nikki, I---" Rowen started, but Nikki cut him off by leaning forward and throwing her arms around his neck. Rowen held still for a moment, then shaky arms came up and wrapped around her waist.

"You're an asshole," she reminded him, even as she hugged him. "Next time I'm driving."

It was an attempt at a joke, and it fell flat between them. But Rowen did sigh and hold her tighter.

"I would've come by…called…something," Rowen told her, sounding guilty as hell.

"Yeah, Mia probably would've had an apoplexy," Nikki chuckled, giving him a tight grin. "You can stop looking at me like you took a baseball bat to my skull, by the way."

Rowen sat back, looking at her with those dark blue eyes.

"You're not mad?" He seemed floored. Nikki flushed and shrugged.

"Kinda…not. No. I guess I should be, but seriously Rowen? I guess I just want to stop all of this. I want to stop making you angry, and I want you to stop making me angry. I don't want to lie to you anymore, and I don't want you to send me crashing through any more windshields. You know?"

Rowen did know. He just couldn't believe that he wasn't getting screamed at right now. The haggard look he had adopted softened slightly.

"Getting hit in the head makes you nicer, Nik," Rowen joked quietly.

Nikki just shook her head.

"Not being scared out of my wits makes me nicer, Rowen."

He looked at her quickly and saw the truth in her words. He was about to say something when he heard people passing by down the hall.

"Wow, it's been so long since I've been in this house," a female voice unfamiliar to Nikki was heard as it neared the room.

Cye had obviously shown up in the meantime as his voice sounded right after.

"Don't get too into wandering around the house. Mia wants everyone to gather in the living room real soon."

Then the redhead was in her doorway. "Hey guys," she greeted. She sent a friendly smile Nikki's way. "You must be Nikki. Hi, I'm Robyn. I'm sorry to hear about your accident."

Nikki just blinked at her. She hadn't noticed from the second story window, but Robyn looked like she had been in something near to a traffic accident herself. She had a large bandage over her forehead and bandaged arms peeking out of long sleeves.

For one brief moment, Nikki feared exactly what force had did this to that girl and her heart jumped.

"My boyfriend did it," Robyn told her lightly, making Nikki suddenly forget her fear with the odd comment.

"Robyn!" Cye barked at her.

"He loves me, I swear," Robyn grinned.

"ROBYN!"

Robyn was already off down the hall while Cye felt he owed the two an explanation.

"I'm sorry, my friend is really retarded," he informed them.

Nikki looked at Rowen who only gave her a smirk in answer. She got up to peek down the hall just in time to see Robyn stop in front of a certain bedroom Nikki hadn't gone near in a very long time. Robyn was looking at the door while Cye was already coming back up the hall, calling for Robyn to come on and fully expecting her to.

Instead, Robyn opened the door to Nikki's old bedroom and stepped in.

Nikki's heart jumped. That room. That horrible, horrible room where so many nightmares had taken place for her. Granted, there had been some good things, too, but the horrors had long since overshadowed and twisted them into something sick and dirty. Upon coming back to Mia's place recently, Nikki had never ventured even down that hall, let alone near the room. To see someone so casually walk into it, it broke something for her and she wasn't sure what. Would a stranger entering that room shatter her twisted memories, or invite them to happen all over again?

Despite the fact that Nikki had vowed never to venture there again, she felt herself pulled towards that room and the red haired girl and she stumbled towards it, eyes wide. Upon reaching it, she blatantly stood in the doorway, but didn't take a step inside. Within, Robyn was standing in the middle of the room, cuffing her toe on the rug as if checking its solidity.

Nikki hitched her breath as she remembered the few times he had came for her by suddenly sucking her into the rug. Just by looking at it, she could feel it's sickening pull all over again. Robyn was now standing with arms folded and regarding the far wall. The same wall he–IT– also often used to enter the room for her.

"This room frightens you, doesn't it?" Robyn said, not looking at her.

Nikki's body tightened. How did she know?

Robyn gave out a loud breath as she looked over the room again. "I don't blame you."

Nikki wasn't sure what she was scared of, but fear gripped her heart. Was it because of the memories this place had surfaced for her? Or was it the fact that a total stranger could point out the perils of this room and she had willingly slept in it night after night? Either way, Nikki stumbled backwards; right into a solid body. She looked up to see it was Rowen; his eyes serious, protective.

He put a hand on Nikki's shoulder and poked his head into the room.

"Robyn, get out of there." His voice stayed neutral, but it was hard enough to suggest it wasn't a request.

The redhead continued to look it over as if he wasn't there.

"Robyn," Rowen said in a harsher voice. "I said get. Out."

Robyn leveled a mild look at him. "Okay..." she said with a slightly offended voice as she paraded out of the room, hands in her pockets.

Rowen stationed his body between the room and the slightly shaken Nikki before closing the bedroom door. As he put a hand on the small of her back and led her down the hall, Nikki realized Rowen hadn't put a single foot into the room either.

* * *

The rest of them had taken seats throughout the living room, sitting in silence, and they were waiting uncomfortably for Rowen and Nikki to finally show up. Eventually the footsteps on the stairs said the remaining two were coming. The blue haired man came down first, an unreadable expression on his face, with the brunette slowly coming up behind. Rowen stepped into the room first, his body blocking her from view, his eyes flickering over all of them before he moved away from her. Even as he settled on his heels across the room from the couch where Mia and Nikki now sat, it was obvious that Rowen was being territorial.

An uncomfortable silence fell across the room. No one said anything, although there were a lot of looks being passed around.

"Anyone want to start this off?" Cye finally wondered out loud.

More silence. And it grew.

"Maybe we should start by getting Robyn up to speed on what happened?" Kento suggested. "Unless you filled her in already, Ryo?"

Nikki's throat tightened. It made her angry that they were going to tell this outsider about what happened. About things they did and things she and Mia and Cassie did. It wasn't this girl's business to know and Nikki did not want to hear it.

Cye had offered Robyn a place on the couch between himself and Ryo, but she had refused.

"Oh no, this isn't about me," Robyn waved them off. "You guys need to do what you came here to do. I'm staying out of it."

She backed up a few steps to remove herself from the close circle to prove her point.

"I'm just here for support, that's all."

Ryo made a motion to stand up and argue with her but Robyn was already motioning back that he should take his seat and get on with it.

Nikki was almost impressed when Ryo did so. They definitely had to have had some kind of history between them. Ryo didn't listen to anyone.

Mia sat up straight. It was a small movement, but the severity of her demeanor instantly sobered the entire room.

"I agree with Robyn. Let's get this done and over with. I don't want to drag this out. Whatever it is you need to say–whatever you need to finish with us, let's hear it so we can get on with our lives."

Nikki noticed Robyn managed to look surprised with Mia's statement. In a way, it was almost comforting. The five Ronin did not blink and Mia's cold approach to them anymore. Robyn's reaction was the only proof in the room that she had not been that way from the start. Even if Robyn and Mia and only known each other for a small amount of time, Robyn still knew she was different. Nikki hadn't just dreamed up the old Mia, she really had been warm and caring to all of them at one point. And she had, indeed noticeably changed.

When no one responded to her, Mia tried again.

"Kento? You're the one that insisted I do this, so say something."

"Mia…" Nikki sighed. "Are you trying to make this worse?"

"I'm trying to make this shorter," Mia replied smoothly.

"Why?" Ryo asked.

Before she could answer, Kento spoke up.

"Because she can only hold onto the cold hearted bitch act for so long before she starts to crack."

Mia looked like he had slapped her in the face. Kento stared at her, eyes glittering.

"Just come right out and say it, you don't want us here," he said, voice mocking her as much as it mocked himself. "You think my idea was stupid and you just want us out of here as soon as possible so you don't have to have anything else to do with us."

"That's not what I meant. You don't have to insult me," she declared, but it was obvious that it flustered her to be immediately attacked by the one Ronin that never pressed her or pushed her.

"And the way you speak to us, the way you treat us like we're a bother to you? That isn't an insult?" Cye asked her, sounding hurt. "After all we have been through together? When did this become us versus you, Mia? We used to all be on the same side."

"We still are," Mia said tightly, refusing to meet anyone's eyes.

"You don't believe it more than any of the rest of us do," Kento called her bluff.

"Hey, lay off of her," Nikki spoke up. "Seriously, if you all plan on insulting her left and right, then there really is no point to all of this. At least have the decency to speak civilly."

"What exactly do you want from us?" Mia said, emotion leaking through. "What do you want me to say, Kento?" she asked him directly. "It's over. What happened can't be changed, but it's through. Nothing else is going to happen."

"You don't know that, Mia," Sage said in a hard voice. "You didn't see the second time coming, did you?"

"Nothing else is going to happen, Sage!" Mia snapped. "I took care of it."

"No, you didn't," Sage came back. "You took a chance and played with fire, Mia. You took a risk, played Russian roulette. You and Nikki and Cassie…you three flirted with the enemy and you made deals with him behind our backs and as far as I'm concerned, you did not win that game! And if that isn't betrayal, then I don't know what is. All three of you decided to go at it alone. Why did you think you couldn't ask us for help? It's amazing we weren't all dead by the time you were done."

"Sage, ease up," Ryo ordered, but Halo was seething.

"And then Cassie, that little fool, thinking that all alone she could take on the devil himself…"

"Don't you dare start in on Cass about this, Sage!" Cye was on his feet, rounding on Halo. "She's not even here to defend herself!"

"And that's her own damn fault, Cye!" Sage retorted. "If she had just thought about how STUPID it was what she was doing then maybe she'd still be here!"

"It was never supposed to be Cassie," Mia murmured softly, looking down at her knees. The voices continued around her, heedless for except one man whose eyes turned at the statement.

"Mia…?" Ryo asked her.

"She was innocent, Sage!" Cye spat. "She never should have been put in that position!"

"Innocent, Cye? No, not Cassie. While it was a stupid move, she knew what she was doing, I'm sure of it. Cassie was never weak and helpless, but that was how you always treated her!" Sage yelled back. "She was more than a pretty blind girl that held your hand, but you never saw her as anything more than that. When she put herself in that position, she knew was she was doing! They all did! Only Cassie drew the short straw, but it just as easily could have been any one them--"

"It was supposed to be ME!" Mia suddenly cried, jerking to her feet. "Me, Sage! Me! It was never supposed to be them. Everything we did, every move we made, every lie we told was to get ME closer to him. To get a chance to get rid of him for good! We passed the seal around so that he wouldn't realize which one of us had it, but it was understood that I was the one that was going to use it. Cassie knew! She knew it was supposed to be me! It wasn't luck that killed her, it was her own stupidity, not waiting…"

The room had gone silent. Every eye was on the redhead who stood trembling.

"And she knew how much it would hurt you two if something happened to her, but that little fool did it anyway," Mia shot angrily at Cye and Sage. "She knew she and Nikki were decoys! Cassie knew! So why the hell she had to let herself be the one…"

"You actually let yourself believe that whole decoy thing, didn't you Mia?" Nikki asked in a bitter voice. "Like it was all going to be okay. Like it would justify everything we did-- all that we let be done to us."

"It WAS justified!" Mia drew herself up proudly, despite the pain on her face. She faced the men in the room. "And these last awful months would never have happened. Don't you get it? You would never have lost anything if I had been the one!"

"What about losing you?" Ryo asked her, a peculiar gentleness in his voice. The expression in his eyes had changed from one of angry confusion to one of growing understanding. "Don't you think it would have hurt us any less? That we wouldn't be grieving for you the way Sage and Cye grieve for Cassie?"

"That's different," Mia shook her head stubbornly.

"Not for me, it's not," Kento spoke softly from the corner. The big man looked shaken, and his mouth was a tight line.

"It's not the same," Mia tried to argue but his voice overrode hers.

"NO, Mia. It…is…not different. And we both know it."

That was all he needed to say. What was left unsaid however hung over the room like a blanket. Everyone knew how he felt, but they never would have thought that Kento would chose this place and this time to force her to acknowledge it. Mia opened her mouth, then shut it tightly again.

"You damn stubborn woman," Kento murmured. "Why did you do this to yourself? Why didn't you let us fight for you? We were born for this, it is who we are. This was never your fight. None of these battles have ever been your fight."

"I'm not a child, Kento!" Mia snapped, eyes flashing wildly. "It's as much my fight as any of yours because it's my friends, my world that dies if we don't win! I have just as much to lose as any of you, more because this is all I have! So don't tell me that I'm not involved! That I'm not allowed to take risks, that I'm supposed to sit placidly by twiddling my thumbs and waiting for you to get yourselves killed. You couldn't fight Damian! You couldn't beat him! Not EVER! But I did! I did twice and I saved your lives twice and I lost my friend and my sanity and my soul in the process so damn it! Admit it that I WAS RIGHT!"

Mia was so angry that tears welled up in her eyes, but she brushed them away with the back of her hand and no more came.

"I'm…not…sorry."

No one said anything for a while. Finally Sage spoke quietly.

"It was your foolish plan that lost us Cassie, Mia. But I would never place her life over yours, or Nikki's. You might believe that it would have been better if you had died, but I would never wish this pain on anyone else. I…I just wouldn't."

"It should have been me," Mia repeated.

"It should never have been any of you," Ryo told her, gaining Mia's attention again. There was strength in his voice, a strength that comes from knowing who you are and why you are here. "You are brave and you are strong and I love you so much Mia, but you are wrong. You have been wrong this whole time and you know it. That's why you're holding us so far away from you. You can't accept it, but you need to."

"Don't you dare, Ryo!" Nikki suddenly rose to Mia's defense. Mia had gone white and was breathing in quick rapid breathes as she sank back into her chair. "Don't you dare make Cassie's death pointless! You don't get it, do you? If we say that we were wrong, then Cassie died for nothing! All those horrible sacrifices we made were for nothing! We're just stupid weak women who made bad decisions and kept you big strong heroes from saving the day. And maybe we were but maybe we weren't! And there's no way to go back and find out, and there's no way to change the past. You want to absolve your own guilt, and I get that. I know what it's like to be eaten away inside by fear and doubt and guilt…"

Nikki sucked in a tight breath and then launched in.

"But I also know what it's like to not be able to sleep at night with the lights off because you're so damn scared that something is there watching you. I know what it's like having someone whistle under their breath behind your shoulder and you spend half the morning hiding in the bathroom, shaking from fear. I know what it's like to think you can't possibly be more terrified than you are, can't possibly feel more alone or feel more dirty…I've watched my friends go to hell and back, literal hell, for you guys. Again. And again. And AGAIN. Part of us will always be back there, hearing that voice, feeling all those things…that he…seeing all those things…" Nikki began losing her words, stumbling over sentences that were too tough to say.

"But that was a decision that we made, and now you want us to unmake it to make you feel better. Well screw you all! Because the fact that we believed that we were doing it to protect you was the ONLY thing that kept us going. That makes the nights even now bearable. Don't you dare take that away from us. We did not kill our friend for NOTHING!"

Up until this point Rowen hadn't said anything. But as Nikki finished her tirade, the blue haired man slowly unfolded from his position. He stood, moving towards the bookcase. He ran a finger over the dusty shelving, his face unreadable.

"You know, this whole time I've been so angry," he sounded as if he was speaking just to himself, but the whole room easily heard his words. The quiet way of speaking contrasted sharply to the yelling that had just occurred. "I've been so angry. I tried to hide it at first, but that didn't work. Then I decided that I was angry at them, for lying to us. For making fools of us."

"Rowen, I didn't--" Mia started but Rowen spoke over her as if unaware she had said anything.

"I felt betrayed. Like something had been stolen from me. Not just my memories, but a piece of myself. And they had done that to me. I was so angry…I stopped being angry the other day. I sat in my car and watched someone that I hated, truly hated, get torn from my grasp. I watched them get hurt and sat there powerless to stop it. I sat there in my car, looking at her lying there broken and injured, and I realized that I wasn't angry at her, but at myself. I just wasn't good enough."

Rowen's head came up and he looked directly at Nikki, his blue eyes boring into hers.

"I wasn't good enough to keep you safe. I tried my damnedest to do it. I did everything that I knew how…I bled and I fought and I killed and I used every bit of strength I had, but it wasn't enough. It wasn't even close to enough. I didn't even know…" Rowen's voice cracked and he sank down to his heels, eyes never leaving Nikki's.

"I really did love you, Nik. I did, even though we never had what they say love is supposed to be. But it was what we had and as screwed up as it was, it was ours. And at night, when I was exhausted and hurt from the fights, I would lie down next to you and hold you. And I knew that no matter how hard it got, how impossible it seemed, at least that day I kept you safe. And I'd go to sleep holding you, listening to you breathe in the darkness, and I would find the strength to keep going. Because we might fight for the world, but we it comes down to it we fight for those we hold the closest. As a Ronin Warrior I will die for my friends and my destiny, but for you Nik? I would have done anything. Anything just to keep you safe."

Rowen's eyes stayed on Nikki, even though he spoke to his teammates.

"I get it, why everyone's so upset, why you guys are so messed up right now. I do. But Cassie was never close enough to either of you to reveal what was going on, and Mia's the queen of hiding her emotions. Guys, he took Nikki out of my bed. When I was there. He took her out of my arms and he tortured her. Right under my nose. I slept and she was tortured. We're heroes? We couldn't even keep the ones closest to us safe when they were in our house not ten feet from us, in our arms against us. She was terrified and I never knew. I went to sleep. Over and over again."

"That's not your fault, Rowen," Nikki whispered shakily.

He tilted his head sideways and gave her a crooked smile.

"Really?" he murmured. "Because it feels like it is. It feels like I failed you, like I let this happen to you. And it feels like I was so blind…"

Rowen's voice cracked again and he rubbed his face wearily. "I just wish…I just wish that you had given me a chance, Nik. Just one chance to have fought for you, instead of always fighting with you."

Nikki looked at him sadly, but said nothing.

"You know, maybe we were supposed to die," Cye said morosely. "Maybe that's why this feels so awful."

"That's grief, Cye," Mia shook her head. "Grief fades with time."

"Yours hasn't," Cye replied back, a glint in his eyes. "It's rolling off you in waves."

Mia looked surprised, then she shifted back awkwardly. As if she thought that simply putting more space between herself and Cye would keep him from picking up on her emotions. He snorted in response and looked away.

"Why are we doing this?" Mia asked no one in particular.

"Because not doing this hasn't been working out too great for us," Ryo answered calmly. "Because we need to be a team and we need to heal, so we all need to be together."

"That's fine," Mia snapped. "But couldn't you have done this somewhere else? It obvious you're not hearing what you want to hear, and all we're doing is upsetting each other. Take your team and go…heal. Leave me out of it."

"Mia, look around you," Ryo told her.

She refused.

"Mia."

At the order, Mia grudgingly turned her face back to the group and looked at them. Slumped and defeated, their eyes haunted. They were all the same, like they had gotten back from a war. Maybe they had. With the return of their memories, all the battles and mental scars had risen to the surface, un-dulled by the passage of time. Nikki sat uncomfortably, her eyes on Rowen.

"Look around you. Mia. This is the team. All of us, we are the team. And we need each other to pull ourselves back on track."

"I am back on track," Mia insisted.

"No, you're not," Nikki contradicted her. Mia opened her mouth but Ryo raised his hand to cut them off.

"We need to pull ourselves back on track," he repeated. "And we need you to help us."

Mia didn't say much for a while, then finally she sighed in defeat.

"Want do you want me to do?" she asked quietly. The guys looked at each other, except for Rowen, who was still watching Nikki. Ryo cleared his throat and walked across the room, kneeling down in front of where Mia was sitting.

"Tell us why you lied to us. Tell us why you didn't feel like you could trust us. Tell us why you cut a deal with the enemy and let him do those things to you, Mia. Tell us why…why you're not sorry," Ryo added softly. Mia drew herself up and looked them all in the eye.

"The seal would have killed anyone that tried to use it. It takes the physical essence of the person using it to activate it, and that's nothing that a mortal can live through. And it would have killed one of you if you had known about it. If you had known then there would have been no way that you would have let one of us use it," Mia said.

"No way in hell we would have," Kento growled. Mia tightened her lips, stiffening at the interruption, but Kento didn't say anything else.

"I was warned by the ancient one, Kayura, when she gave it to me that should one of you activate the seal and die in the process, that results would be disastrous." Mia hesitated here, thinking about her words before she said them. "That you would be needed beyond that threat. That if one of you fell, the rest of the world would be doomed."

"It's our choice," Sage said quietly. "This may be our fate, our destiny, but I reserve the right to die for who or what I choose. I'm not a slave to anyone or anything, not even the armors."

"What would be the point of saving someone, if your death only insured that later they would die?" Mia asked him with tired eyes. "Maybe in a worse way with thousands of others alongside them?"

"You don't know that for certain, Mia," Cye stated. "You might believe it, but you don't know it."

"I know that I wasn't willing to take the chance," she replied softly. "I know that I wasn't ready to lose any of you."

At her statement Ryo shook his head in wonder.

"And how about us?" he asked. "What made you think we were ready to lose you? Or Cassie and Nikki or anyone? Don't you understand that the people we love the most are the reason we don't give up? The reason we keep fighting even when we know that it's too much for us to win? We win because we have to. For you. Without that we're…just fighting."

"You're such a hypocrite, Ryo!" Nikki suddenly cried, looking distraught. "Why is it okay for you to fight for us, but not for us to fight for you?"

"Because it's who we are," he told her simply.

She didn't look satisfied.

"Well, who are we supposed to be?" Nikki demanded. "The ones who sit back and quietly let the world go to hell because you're too noble to do anything but sacrifice yourselves? I refuse to accept that."

"Obviously," Cye said with a small sad smile.

"Cye…" Nikki turned to him pleadingly. "Why don't you understand this? You should, you know what I'm feeling right now."

"The only thing I can focus on is how I feel right now, Nik," Cye said callously. "At the moment I couldn't care less about your feelings."

"No? Then why do this? Why ask us if you don't want to hear what we're saying? Mia was right, this wasn't a good idea."

"Nikki…" Rowen said softly, grabbing her attention. She looked at him in frustration. "We need to get this out. You owe us that. Just this once."

Nikki's eyes turned flat as she wrapped her arms around herself.

"I've paid all I need to pay. I owe you nothing, Rowen."

"Then do it for me because I need you to," he murmured. "Because I asked you to."

Nikki stared at him, then sighed and slumped in her seat.

"Mia?" Ryo asked pointedly to the redhead, who nodded and continued.

"I made the deal with…him because it was the only way to get close enough to him to use it." Mia took a long breath. "He knew I had a weapon that could hurt him, but he didn't believe I could best him. It was a…mind game. Would I catch him off guard and manage to get to him before he made me…break? He wanted to know your secrets, where your strengths and weaknesses were. I knew them all. He tried to break down my mind and get me to betray you. Nikki and Cassie wouldn't let me do it alone. So we made the deal and we hid the seal amongst ourselves so that he wouldn't know where it was coming from. But it was always supposed to be me who used it in the end. I was prepared for that.

"He played with us, but we didn't break. Not until…" Mia broke off, her face twisting in self loathing. Ryo took one of Mia's limp hands in his own strong one, squeezing reassuringly.

"Not until the night before the final battle. He…he found a way past my defenses." Mia glanced guiltily at Kento, whose face was stony. He knew what Damian had done, how he had tricked Mia into thinking he was Kento rescuing her. Kento knew what had ensued afterwards and the scars it had left on the woman in front of him. But that was something for another day, and he wouldn't humiliate her by forcing it into the open. The others wouldn't do it to her either.

"At the last fight, he forgot about Cassie. Months of the game and it was the only time he slipped up. Cassie took her opportunity and now she's gone. It shouldn't have happened like that, but it did." She didn't sound quite as sure of herself.

"I took your memories using a crystal Kayura had given me for that specific purpose. I initially didn't want to use it, but he had changed you all. You went through too many months of losing battles, of lost confidence and injuries. He broke you. I never wanted you to know that he had broke you, and I still think that I did the right thing. You were okay afterwards, you didn't remember a thing. A year of your lives full of anguish was just gone. I wish I could have done it too, but it wouldn't have been right. Not after…"

"After Cassie sacrificed herself?" Sage asked.

Mia nodded, blinking rapidly as she stared at her lap.

"I needed to remember that. Forever."

The room was silent for a long while. Finally Rowen looked at Mia and asked the final question.

"Why didn't you trust us? What did we do so wrong that you couldn't trust us?" he needed to know. Mia opened her mouth, and she shut it again. Then suddenly tears sprang to her eyes, running down her face silently. She pulled her hand out of Ryo's grasp and she stood, moving to the window. Mia stood with her back to them, arms crossed tightly to her chest.

Nikki rose to her feet, eyes drifting over the room, resting briefly on all of them before she finally landed on Rowen.

"It was never about trust," Nikki answered for Mia in a tiny voice. "It was about love."

Then Nikki fled, unable to stand the way Rowen's eyes drilled into her, or the pain on Sage's face, or the way Mia's shoulders were shaking. Slowly the room dispersed, the men lost in their own thoughts. All except for one. Kento moved to the window where Mia still stood. He didn't speak. There was too much to say and nothing she would listen to without walking away. The tears sliding down her cheeks were the only indication that the woman had any emotions at all anymore. He felt like he didn't even know this person in front of him, that the girl he had loved so much was gone. Then Kento caught a glint of a familiar gold chain and the way her hand kept straying towards it. His heart did a sideways lurch. She was still wearing the necklace. His necklace.

A deep sigh escaped his throat and Kento moved behind Mia. He wrapped one of his large arms around her waist and gently tugged her backwards until her shoulder blades rested against his broad chest. Then he folded his other arm over her collarbone, his jaw brushing the hair by her temple.

"It's okay," he whispered in her ear.

"No, it's not," Mia choked, then she started to cry even harder.

"Yes, babe, it is. It's all okay now…" Shushing her, Kento pulled her over to the window seat, sitting them down and keeping her close. Wordlessly, Kento held her as she cried her tears. For the first time in years, she let him.

* * *

It was in Nikki's old room again where she was found. Mia popped her head in and gave Robyn a curious look. Her eyes were still a little puffy from earlier, but Mia had made herself presentable enough to go look for Robyn when it was noticed she was missing. The younger red head was curled up in a wicker chair and looking thoughtfully at the wall.

"So here is where you went to," Mia said. "What is your infatuation with this room?"

"Why?" Robyn asked cryptically. "What's wrong with it?"

"Nothing," Mia insisted shortly. "Everyone was wondering where you went."

Sometime during their group discussion, Robyn had left the room. No one could say at what time she retreated from the scene, they were too wrapped up in their own emotions to notice.

"I've just been sitting in here," Robyn replied simply.

Mia looked at her, a bit perturbed. Robyn was purposefully not explaining herself, it was annoying.

"So, how much did you hear, then?" she asked, mostly hoping they wouldn't have to now explain it all to Robyn again today before they all left.

"I could hear it all from here," Robyn said, still looking at the wall. "The sound carries quite well."

"And?" Mia demanded. She didn't recall Robyn being this blunt about responses. She usually shared her thoughts with everyone. "What did you think? What do you have to say about it?"

Robyn shrugged. "I don't know what to think. I wasn't really there. Anything I would have to say wouldn't really matter. It already happened and it didn't involve me." Her voice lowered as she looked out the window. "I'm just sorry it happened to all of you."

Mia stood there, not sure how to react. Her eyes wandered over Robyn's bandages. Ryo had been vague on where she had gotten them. Mia wasn't sure why, but she was feeling a bit cheated by Robyn's answer. Why? Did she expect Robyn to judge her as well as her friends have judged her? Maybe she was hoping Robyn would agree with her? What? What did Mia want Robyn to say?

"You look like you want to ask me something," Robyn said. "Go ahead, Mia. I'll listen."

Mia stared at her, feeling she was on unfamiliar ground. This was the first time she had talked to someone who knew about the armors and knew what happened and they weren't giving her one of those judgmental looks. How could Robyn be so neutral? She loved the Ronin to death. Why wasn't she taking their side?

She took a moment to piece together the question that was gnawing at her. "If you were there-- Do you think I did the right thing with what I did to them?"

Robyn gave her a curious look. "Why does my opinion matter? I don't exactly make the best choices myself."

Mia shrugged helplessly. "I need to know."

Accepting the request, Robyn furrowed her brows as she readjusted herself in the chair, thinking hard. Mia was a bit surprised she was only considering this now. She would have thought Robyn had long since drawn her own conclusions from their discussion. Apparently she didn't know this girl like she thought.

"I think," Robyn said slowly, trying to put her thoughts together. "I would I have told them if it were me. I wouldn't have been able to cut a deal against them. Never."

Mia looked away, nodding. But Robyn wasn't finished.

"However, would I have been right? I don't know. You're braver than I am, Mia. And you're so self-sacrificing and loving. I have spent my entire life surviving. I really don't know if I have it in me to sacrifice myself like that for someone else. Even for them. I couldn't have done what you did and I really have no idea if it was something you should not have done."

"I see," Mia said, taking a moment to think about it. It wasn't exactly a solid answer, but she could accept it. "Thank you."

Robyn shifted in her seat again. "Can I ask you a question, now?"

Mia nodded and Robyn looked her in the face, eyes serious. She swallowed before speaking in almost a whisper.

"Why didn't you believe in them?"

Taken aback from the unexpected question, Mia worked her mouth up and down, trying to come up with an answer.

"Kayura– the Ancient– she told me they wouldn't–"

"Well what the hell does she know?" Robyn cut her off, her voice rising in passion. "They kicked her ass!"

"She's the ANCIENT!" Mia insisted. "She can see things! She has wisdom."

"I don't CARE!" Robyn barked as she stood up. "You don't give up on your friends! No matter what anyone else says!"

Mia gave her a moment to calm down before speaking in a low voice. "You weren't there, Robyn. You didn't have to watch them lose battle after battle. You didn't have to live through that horror day after day wondering if this was going to be the end. There was already defeat in their faces, in their eyes. I had to do something to help them. Even if it put me at risk, I had to. You really don't think you wouldn't have done the same?"

Robyn took a step away from her, heading towards the door. "And what did they see in your faces? Hope? Trust? Support? Or did they already see their end in your eyes?"

Realization took over Mia's face, followed with a profound regret. But Robyn didn't see it, she was already in the door way. Before leaving, she paused and turned back.

"I may not have been there, but I know exactly what you were fighting, Mia. Darkness feeds on more darkness. Evil needs despair to keep it alive. And heroes cannot win if no one believes they can. This Kayura's promise sounds very much like a self fulfilled prophesy to me. Maybe if you didn't know you had already been defeated, you wouldn't have been."

When she left, the room grew still and, to Mia, it grew very cold.

* * *

Cye found Sage in the kitchen, where the blond man was making himself a pot of tea. His back was to Cye when Torrent entered the room, and it was not missed that his shoulders stiffened. Cye tried not to let on that his feelings were hurt as he moved to the kitchen table.

"Would you like a cup?" Sage asked politely, albeit a little coldly, and Cye declined. Instead he turned to the blond man, watching him with carefully.

"Sage, are you angry with me?" Cye suddenly asked. Sage didn't answer immediately, instead focused on the boiling water in front of him. "Sage?"

"I told you we would never fight over her, Cye," his friend said in a hard voice. "I don't intend to start now."

"I didn't bring her up."

"You're about to," Sage countered.

Cye's eyes flashed as he stood up.

"Is that so wrong?" he asked. "Is it so wrong for me to want to talk about her with you? Is it so awful to want someone who knows how badly this feels, to have someone who understands?"

Sage shook his head and poured the boiling water over a tea bag.

"That's the problem, Cye. You see, I don't understand. I don't know what it feels like to you. And to be perfectly honest, I don't want to know."

Cye stared at Sage in shock.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Cye demanded, hurt thick in his tone. "To not give a damn at all that this hurts me so much--"

Sage rounded on Cye, violet eyes a thundercloud. Like a dam bursting, his words came out, running over one another.

"You think I don't care about you? You don't think that I give a damn about you? Cye all I have EVER done is care about you! I cared about your feelings and her feelings and shoved mine so far down inside me until I thought I was going to burst. Months of loving her and loving you and trying so freaking hard to not betray your trust and your friendship when all I wanted was her! And she wasn't even yours, Cye! She wasn't anyone's and I STILL stayed away from her! Because I cared about you and you cared about her! I slipped once, just once. I got to kiss her once, to hold her once, and I NEVER forgave myself! Because of you! Because of you I never tried for her the way I could have, the way I desperately wanted to. Because of you I wasn't close enough to see what was happening, and when she needed me and she let me know she needed me, I chose my friendship to YOU, Cye! So don't you ever say that I don't give a damn about you."

Sage turned back to his tea, movements vicious. Cye was stunned into silence, especially when he realized that Sage wasn't done.

"And no, I don't want to talk about her with you. I don't want to hear that you loved her and that you miss her and that you should have saved her. Because the only thing that I have left of her is my grief and I'll be damned if I share that with you, too! That's mine!"

Cye sank back down to his seat, eyes wide. Sage's hands were trembling and he spilt the tea from the cup he held. He fumbled with a towel, managing only to drop both cup and towel on the ground. An oath left his mouth, and Sage bent down to mop up the spilt tea. He didn't stand back up. Head bent and face out of view, the blond man leaned against the cabinets, hands gripping the countertop above him as his entire body started shaking.

Strong arms wrapped around Sage's torso as he slid to the ground. Halo let out a choked sob, hands gripping at Cye's arms as Sage buried his face between his knees. Cye knelt next to him, holding Sage tightly.

"It's okay," Cye whispered thickly, tears welling up in his own eyes as his friend cried. "It's okay, Sage."

"I...miss…her."

Cye couldn't have said if Sage said it or felt it, but it didn't matter. Cye knew. And he knew beyond a doubt that as much as he hurt over this, it had devastated his friend. Sage quickly contained his tears, unable to let even this emotion show for long. But Halo stayed on the floor for a long time, mourning what he'd lost, and Cye stayed with him until he was done, never once speaking of his own grief. Sage had given up plenty for him…Cye could give up his need to share his pain.

He at least owed Sage that.

* * *

Ryo was standing out on the dock, watching the light of the setting sun glitter off the lake. He had been standing there, doing just that for quite a while now when he heard light footsteps sound on the wood, coming towards him.

"Everyone else informed me that if I wanted to go home, I had to get a ride with you," Robyn stated conversationally. "Are you ready to move on?"

That question had two meanings and Ryo caught them both.

"I think it's getting there," he said, not taking his eyes from the water. "What did you think of... all this?"

The redhead let out a heavy sigh. "I think maybe you guys have let this thing have too much control over you–even now. You've let your lives be so defined by the past and the possibility of it happening again that you didn't allow yourselves to move on.

"You're all mourning your losses, and I understand that. But shouldn't you appreciate the fact that Cassie and White Blaze loved you all enough to sacrifice themselves to help you win? Instead of being angry and hurt, there needs to be room for gratitude. Otherwise, the memories of your friends will become bitter ones and that is no way to honor them."

Ryo turned and looked at her as if seeing her for the first time. Her eyes shown a vibrant green. Had they always been that color? He remembered them being stormy and grey. Her whole face, for that matter, reflected a health and radiance he never noticed before.

"I think you may just be wiser than all of us there, Robyn. I wish you had stayed to tell the guys that."

Robyn shrugged. "You can tell them to help them keep moving forward."

Ryo nodded. "So now that we have told you all our secrets, I want to talk about you."

Robyn looked doubtful. "About me? What for?"

Ryo's expression softened as he reached out to brush a few strands away from her forehead, touching his knuckles to her bandage.

"I want to know why this happened so I can make sure it doesn't happen again."

Robyn stepped away from his touch. "I'm sorry, Ryo, but as I said, it's not your business."

Ryo took the opportunity to look offended. "What? But we all poured our guts out today! We admitted everything!"

"And I really hope it helped you, Ryo. But this wasn't a trade off. There are some things I would like to keep to myself."

Ryo clenched his fists. "We brought you here to hear all this so you would be safe!"

"Yes, and what I am not telling you will not harm you at all."

"But," Ryo's voice rose in exasperation. "It harmed you!"

"No," Robyn returned calmly. "You showing up out of nowhere harmed me. I know you don't believe it, but you'll just have to take my word for it."

"I can't! I have to know for myself that you're going to be okay!"

Robyn sighed. "Ryo, I know you've had a past history of people lying to you, telling you everything is alright when it isn't, but I am not one of those people." She reached up and began picking at the tape holding the bandage on her forehead. "If I were into something that I thought I couldn't handle, I would tell you."

She ripped the bandage off her forehead. "So when I say I have it under control, you'll just have to believe me."

Ryo stared at her. The gauze in Robyn's hand had a bit of dried blood on it. Her forehead, however, did not bear any evidence of any such wound.

"How did–"

Robyn's stubborn expression told he would not get an answer to the end of that question. So instead, Ryo sighed and looked back at the water.

"Okay then, what about.... you and me?"

Robyn's mouth ticked up as she, too, watched the lake. "Boy you're just trying to hit every target today, aren't you?"

"And?" Ryo pressed. "Where exactly are we going?"

Robyn was quiet, letting the sound of the water moving to and fro against the pier pass between them.

"Ryo, I adore you. I love being with you and spending time together. But in a few more weeks, I won't be here anymore and it may be a very, very long time until I see you again."

Ryo shoved his hands in his pockets. "So that's it then, we're through as of right now?"

Robyn swiveled her head to look at him. "Come on, there was never any "we", Ryo."

"Well why not!" Ryo announced, turning his body to face her as Robyn did the same. "Why does it have to end right now, today? Why can't we just go on like we have been as if you weren't going to leave?"

"You just want to pretend it away?" Robyn asked, raising an eyebrow. "That hardly–"

"Yes!" Ryo burst out, suddenly hugging her tight around the shoulders. He pressed his face into her shoulder and Robyn could feel his body shaking as he spoke into her shirt.

"I just want to pretend for a while longer that you and I are normal people with normal lives. Is that okay?"

Stunned at first, Robyn's arms stayed at her side as her body went stiff at the contact. But at his words, her frame relaxed. Her eyes closed and she leaned into his embrace.

"Yeah, Ryo. That would be okay."

* * *

The dusk fell over the mansion and some of the Ronins still had not left. Maybe it was a cleansing thing. Maybe they felt like if they left then they would never be able to come back. Maybe they just weren't ready quite yet to move on.

Rowen had spent the last few hours on the roof, watching the sun slide away and the sky darken. He never failed to be amazed as the thousands of stars twinkled into view, stretching farther than he could ever comprehend. He had spent countless hours in this very spot, centering his mind and searching his soul. So far he hadn't come up with much.

A rattling noise off to his right signaled that someone was climbing out of the upstairs window to join him. Rowen's heart quickened when he saw long brown hair peek into view, but he kept his expression smooth.

Nikki gained the roof, albeit slower than she used to do, and the girl scooted over to where Rowen was current lying on his back, arms folded beneath his head.

"That used to be easier," Nikki muttered as she made herself comfortable. "I'm getting old."

Rowen gave her a tight smile.

"You have a concussion. That kind of thing doesn't make climbing any easier," he told her. Nikki nodded and pulled her knees up to her chest.

"You've been up here for a while," she said quietly.

"Hmmm," he murmured non-committingly.

Nikki stayed silent for a couple minutes, every once in a while casting looks at Rowen. Finally she sighed and shook her head, turning to climb back down. Cool fingers clasped her wrist lightly, making her turn back.

"Did you mean it, what you said in there?" Rowen asked her suddenly, still staring at the stars.

"Which part?" she asked uncomfortably, easing back towards him and trying to ignore the way her whole arm came alive at his touch. Damn but Rowen didn't know what he did to her, even with something small like that.

"When you said it wasn't about trust." He left out the second part.

Nikki bowed her head and nodded.

"Yeah. For Mia it wasn't about trust. It was entirely about love. She lost everything, including herself out of love for you guys."

"What about for you, Nik?" Rowen asked quietly, his fingers still touching her wrist. "Why did you do it? Why didn't you run?"

"Like I always seem to do when it comes to you?" she asked half joking, half bitter. Rowen said nothing, waiting for her reply. Nikki sighed and looked at Rowen.

"What do you want me to say, Rowen? That I was in love with you? All the times that we fought and hurt each other…that wasn't love. Sex and love are two different things. We were good with the first, but good sex is not being in love."

Rowen didn't reply for a while.

"You were my first, you know?" he finally said softly. Nikki raised an eyebrow skeptically.

"Rowen, there's no way that you were--"

"You were the first that I couldn't get enough of. You were the first that I had to stay on my toes to keep up with. You were a bitch, Nik, but you had such an honest way of looking at life. You didn't try to make yourself seem anything but what you naturally were." Rowen's fingers lightly stroked her wrist. "You might not have liked me, but you got me. You knew who I was."

She shivered slightly at his touch, a fact that didn't go unnoticed by him even though his eyes were still on the heavens.

"And I knew you too," Rowen added.

Nikki couldn't deny it. He had always been able to read her, even when she didn't want him to. It was why she had pulled so far away from him.

"That's not enough," Nikki told him softly. "I don't remember much about the car ride and the accident, but I think we were talking about that. What we were, it isn't enough."

"I never said it was," Rowen said simply. Then his voice quivered slightly as he asked her the question that had been burning through his mind for months. "Do you hate me for not stopping you before everything happened? For not knowing and not saving you?"

Nikki was silent a long time then finally answered him honestly. The time for lies was done.

"Yes," she whispered. "Sometimes, I do. Rather I did. Now, I don't really know. Do you hate me for not letting you save me?"

Rowen sucked in a tight breath then let it out again.

"Yeah. Yeah, I think I do."

The night sky stretched around them, two small insignificant people trying desperately to put their lives back together. Rowen's fingers moved downwards, slowly slipping through Nikki's. Shivering even more, she let him hold her hand in his much larger one.

"So what now?" she asked softly.

Rowen finally looked over at her, his dark blue eyes glittering in the moonlight.

"I think that I want to hold your hand for a while," he told her simply. "Is that okay?"

Nikki looked at him for a long moment before she gave him a small tentative smile.

"Yeah."

Rowen didn't say anything for a long time, then his hold on her hand tightened.

"I'm sorry I hurt you," Rowen finally said in a choked voice, eyes locked on the stars above. He held onto her like she was a lifeline.

"I'm sorry I hurt you, too," Nikki whispered, meaning it completely.

They stayed like that for a very long time.

* * *

It was late. Very late and the city of Toyoma was quiet.

Robyn woke up, the hair on the back of her neck rising in warning. Slowly she turned over in her bed. Staring at her, so close that their noses almost touched was the little boy. His black eyes glittered in the darkness, wide and full of fear. He glanced at the window then looked back at her. Robyn sat up and shifted backwards as the boy disappeared in front of her eyes.

Underneath her, Robyn finally heard the scratching.

This time it wasn't outside the window.

Robyn went cold, shaking with fear. The corner of her bedcover tugged downwards. She thought about running screaming from the room. She thought about making a dash to the phone, the police or Ryo a single call away. She thought about closing her eyes and praying that it was all just a nightmare.

_Scratch. Scratch. _

Robyn thought about a lot of things, things that she had run away from, things that she had feared. Things that she had let control her and send her fleeing in a blind panic her entire life. Instinct told her to run, to scream for help.

Instead, Robyn leaned over the edge of the bed and looked down.


	9. Chapter 9

A/N I know it's been forever (and ever and ever) since this fic was updated, and there's no good excuses for the long wait. Ghost of the Dawn was always good about remembering this fic, but for me, there always seemed like too many other things to work on and the inspiration just wasn't there. But the inspiration is back, and Ghost and I are trying to get this project wrapped up. Hopefully the next chapter won't be…five years in coming. Lol, that's really terrible, huh?

**The Blinding Mask**

Chapter Nine

The tour was a lucky one, only about fifteen minutes out on the water and the captain spotted several dark figures breaking among the waves. A pod of sperm whales surfaced for air and the tourists ate it up, chatting lively at the side of the boat, cameras clicking at a frantic pace. Only one passenger stayed on the opposite side of the ship. She had to be a tourist. It was unlikely she was from Japan with her pale skin and bright red hair.

But it wasn't the whales she was after. This was the opportunity she had been waiting for. With everyone else preoccupied, Robyn dug into her backpack and retrieved an intricate china doll. It had a beautifully painted face and bright kimono. Instead of the traditional dark eyes and hair, her eyes were green and hair bright red. Just like Robyn's. The physical similarities were just the beginning of why it set her at unease the first time she saw it.

The doll had just appeared in her apartment one day and, despite Robyn's attempts to get rid of it, it would always come back. There was something wrong with it. Robyn knew darkness the moment she laid eyes on it. It even agitated the harmless spirit of the drowned boy who inhabited her apartment. Sometimes, when Robyn glanced at it out of the corner of her eye, the beautiful painted face would mar into... something else.

Robyn never told Ryo, or Sage, or any of the others of the doll's existence. She worried them enough as it was, especially after the whole haunted house incident. This, she decided, she would continue to take care of on her own. After throwing the doll in various trash cans around the city, including a dumpster outside a Shinto temple, it always came back.

Robyn was getting fed up when she found it hiding under her bed the night she returned from Mia's house. This time, she was going to do it right.

The doll was wrapped in a white cloth with stones and Robyn held it with all its extra weight over the churning water of the sea.

"Whatever darkness is in you," Robyn said softly to the painted face, "let it go and find peace." Then she dropped it into the water and watched the package sink into the depths.

Once it was out of sight, Robyn let out a sigh and allowed her shoulders to relax. It made her skin tingle just to have it so close. She hoped this time it would rest for good. Japan was really no place for a person like her to live. The country was too old and the people too superstitious. Fear of the spirits made them churn and wander. It made Robyn's work cut out for her, but she was determined to finish it.

For the rest of the whale watching tour, Robyn sat and thoughtfully watched the ocean. She saw a whale or two herself and took quiet pleasure in it. Much more pleasure, however, was taken when her foot touched solid ground again. The water still made her nervous, though not as bad as it used to be. She was getting over that, too.

Once the tour was over, Robyn headed toward her originally planned destination. It used to be an older neighborhood, but you couldn't tell any more. Most of the buildings had been bulldozed to make way for new apartments. Including the old house Robyn lived in as a child. Not that anything had been left of it before. Ryo saw to it that Robyn's childhood home had burned properly to the ground several years previous.

Robyn had to take care of her doll problem first before she came here. It seemed unwise to bring one darkness to another place of darkness. Though the evil of this place was long gone by now. The fire had burned it all away. Robyn couldn't sense any remnants of that thing that had lurked in the corners of her childhood home and, even once or twice, slithered over to the neighbor's, the Mouris.

The redhead quietly watched the space where a new building stood. If only all evil could be rid of so easily. In the silent nights, she often wondered if it was that dark entity that was the problem. Was it the cause of her mother losing her mind or her father's abusive rage? Or was it the other way around?

Not that it mattered much any more. All of them were gone now. Robyn was the victor, she was the one left standing. There was no more proof that anything unseemly had ever occurred in this area.

Robyn let out a heavy breath. This was her last destination in Japan. She would love for her boys to continue to believe she had come all the way out here to see them, but that wasn't entirely so. She had come to face her demons—the things that kept her awake at night. The first had been that haunted house and it had still been a true horror until, again, Ryo had finished with it. Now it was probably as innocuous as any other pile of ash, the spirits trapped within now free to go where ever spirits tended to go. Robyn idly wondered if that was part of Ryo's power, exorcising the darkness with the light of his fire.

Did he have enough light to keep her out of the darkness forever?

Robyn quickly shook those thoughts away. It was better not to cling to false hope. Not to mention she shouldn't harbor ideas of dragging any of them into her world. Not when they had so many other weights on their shoulders as it was. Robyn didn't want to be just another heavy load pulling them down.

This place of her childhood was the last place she meant to visit while in Japan. It held more haunting memories than actual horror in the present. But Robyn had to see it—to look upon it without fear. That had been her goal. Now she could leave this place, this country, especially since her boys seemed to be recovering from their own darkness.

She could return home, feeling good about them being on the mend. It all felt like it was meant to turn out this way. Everyone would be fine.

* * *

There was a knock on her door and Robyn was hardly surprised. She had made a bet with herself at the odds of which Ronin would contact her first after everything that had been said at Mia's house. Her odds were on Ryo or Cye. Robyn had bet wrong.

"Rowen," she said simply, unable to keep the surprise out of her voice.

"I called you earlier," he informed her. "There wasn't any answer, so I thought I'd come over."

"When no one answers, that means no one is home," Robyn shot back.

"You're home," Rowen reminded her, not missing a beat.

"I just barely got back. You almost missed me."

"Where did you go?"

Robyn shrugged to add nonchalance to her story. "Just out and around. Get some fresh air, do some sightseeing." At that point, she realized Rowen was still outside and she moved to allow him to come in.

As his taller form walked through the door, it dawned on Robyn that it was just him and her alone in the apartment. Before all this happened, she would not have thought twice about it. But she had never seen his temper before then. His anger had been so focused and violent; so full of self-loathing and destruction. Robyn would have never guessed her silly Rowen to be capable of such emotion. Realization that she really didn't know him anymore made caution set in.

"So, are you doing okay?" she asked carefully.

"Yeah, I've been feeling…better I guess. Not perfect, but better," he admitted with a lightness in his voice that she hadn't heard in a while. "Ever since that day, I think we've all been slowly trying to—"

He paused when he noticed Robyn was still by the door. She had closed it, but her hands held the knob behind her back. As if she was ready to bolt outside at the slightest hint of trouble. True to his nature, Rowen looked around the apartment to find the source of her concern, before he realized that what Robyn was ready to bolt from was him. Rowen grew still, and then moved to the arm of the couch, sitting down to make himself seem less tall, less intimidating. Giving her more space.

In that moment, Rowen realized that he had broken something between them with the way he had been behaving. Perhaps permanently. Robyn still cared about him, but she, having had a past littered with violent men, didn't trust him any more.

Rowen looked down at the floor, then back up again, clearing his throat. "I'm not going to hurt you, Robyn."

"I know."

But her back was still against the door; pressed as far away from him as she could get.

Rowen was immediately filled with regret. He might have originally come to speak to her about something else, but he was going to address this first. "Robyn, I am so sorry for the way I've been lately. I have had so much anger and frustration in me for so long. It had nothing to do with you, but I took it out on you anyway. I'm an asshole."

She didn't nod, but she also didn't disagree, and that, more than anything, showed her feelings on the subject. But Robyn loved him too much to try to hurt him with words, the way Rowen and Nikki seemed to so often do to each other. Words weren't weapons for Robyn. They were ways to become closer to people, not to push them away.

Rowen cleared his throat, still holding her gaze. "I know all I have to do is ask you to forgive me, and you'll just say you already have. Because that's the way you are with us. Anything we ask, you want to do it. And you will say you have forgiven me even if, in your heart, you still don't trust me anymore."

Robyn still didn't reply, didn't move from the door.

"All I'm asking is that you give me a chance to do better. And maybe, sometime in the future, you can really forgive me for what I've done."

"Okay," she finally said quietly, looking down at her shoes. After a moment of silence, she lifted her head, her expression back to its usual. "So, what did you come over here for?"

The Ronin's shoulders stooped slightly in apology. "I'm going to be a jerk, again. I came to ask you for a favor."

Robyn huffed, putting on the tone she used to use on him. "Exactly what kind of favor?"

He looked a touch self-conscious as he admitted, "I want to take Nikki out on a date. Some place really nice. But Mia's not letting me go anywhere alone with her and Nikki's being a bit gun-shy about it, too."

The red head folded her arms over her chest. "And exactly what am I supposed to do about it?"

"You and Ryo should come with us. We'll double date. It will be fun."

Robyn blinked at him. She never imagined herself going on a double date with any of them. Then again, before those past few weeks, she had never expected to be somewhat dating one of them either. "What about Mia? They're friends. Don't you think Nikki would be more comfortable with her?"

Rowen seemed to immediately dislike that idea. "Mia and I... we're not as close as we used to be and I'm not really sure if I should be asking her to find a date right now. Some people might not take it all that well."

Robyn raised an eyebrow, but Rowen didn't elaborate, instead giving her a charming smile. "Besides, I'd like to see you and Nikki become friends. I think she needs to know more people, it will be good for her."

Robyn was pretty sure Nikki didn't like her at all from first impressions, but she kept that to herself.

"Please?" Rowen begged when he didn't get an answer. "I will owe you forever with this one. Please help me out."

"You owe me forever anyway," she retorted. Then in a softer voice, "You really like this girl, don't you?"

"Yes, I do," Rowen said with a seriousness that even made Robyn's heart flutter. "So much that it drives me crazy, and half the time I don't know what to do about it. In a few days, she's going to be leaving me to go back home. Again. But before she does, I want to try to fix this if I can. If she leaves, I want her last memories of this place—of me—to be good ones. Will you help me?"

Robyn looked into his crystalline blue eyes. They were full passion and honesty. For a moment she was jealous of Nikki.

She sighed. "Fine. I'll do it."

"Thank you," Rowen said, giving her another pleased smile as he pulled out his cell phone and scrolled his contacts. He then handed her an already ringing phone. "Here, he's still a little frustrated with me, but he can't say no to you."

"Who did you call?" Robyn asked suspiciously, just as the phone was answered.

"What's up, Rowen?" came Ryo's voice on the other end. He sounded quite unenthusiastic, and just like Rowen said, a touch frustrated. Holding them together and trying to force peace on his little world had been hard on Ryo.

"Actually, this is Robyn."

"Oh hey, hi!" His tone instantly perked up. "How's it going?"

"Well, Rowen's over here at my place right now..."

"Do I need to come over?" Ryo immediately asked with a protective tone. Robyn's mouth twitched into a small smile. That was kind of adorable.

"No, no. He wants us to go on a double date with him and Nikki."

"A fancy date," Rowen reminded.

"Rowen says we're going someplace fancy." She paused. "Can you even do fancy?"

"Because if you can't handle it Ryo," Rowen called loudly toward the phone. "I can find someone else to go with her. I'll ask Sage to take her out. She'll never look at you again."

"Oh Rowen," Robyn huffed, "Don't even—"

"I'll do it!" Ryo's determined voice sounded over the phone. "Now put Rowen on the phone."

Robyn handed the cell back to Strata. "Yeah?" A pause. "I was thinking tonight. That's not too soon is it?" Another pause. "No, I've got everything planned. I'll text you about it." Then he snapped his phone shut without saying goodbye.

"Thanks for doing this," Rowen then said to Robyn. "I think it's going to be fun."

"Yeah, it could be fun," she agreed, finally moving away from the door and toward her bedroom. "I don't think I've ever gone on a real fancy date. I'll have to see if I can find something in the closet appropriate to wear."

"Nope," Rowen informed her. "I've made other arrangements for you." He glanced out her window. "And I see your escorts pulling up right now."

"Escorts?" She immediately wondered how Ryo had arrived to her place so fast. But when Robyn looked outside, it was Sage's car that was pulling in. She immediately whipped around on Strata with a suspicious glare. "What are you plotting?"

Rowen grabbed her shoulders and gently but firmly pushed her out the door. "I told you, everything is taken care of," he reminded her smugly. "Just go with them."

"Them?"

Cye and Sage both stayed in the car when they saw Robyn was being guided down to meet them.

"I leave her in your hands, boys," Rowen said as he opened the back door on the passenger side for her. Robyn got in obediently, looking a little too surprised to put up a fight. After shutting the door behind her, Rowen looked in the passenger window at Cye. "Remember what I told you."

Cye's response was to roll up the window in his face and Sage promptly pulled away. Robyn wordlessly watched Strata as they drove off. He looked very pleased with himself, a little too pleased. She had to wonder if a date with Nikki was all he was up to.

* * *

Dead sexy.

Those were the exact words Rowen had used and Cye wasn't sure if he approved of attempting to meet that definition. He did, however, approve of the plan. "Operation: Keep Robyn in Japan" was what Rowen called it. Cye figured Rowen was doing this as a way to help make up for his past mistakes. Torrent wondered if Robyn would see it that way.

"Robyn belongs with us," Rowen had insisted to the two of them. "We all know it and inside she knows it, she just needs a little extra incentive."

"So we're putting all the responsibility on Ryo's shoulders," Sage accused, arms folded across his chest and frowning over Rowen's small dining table the afternoon before.

"It's going to have to be this way," Rowen insisted. "He's the one that's crazy about her and probably the only one that can convince her to stay. But he hasn't been as assertive about this as he should be. We need to push him in the right direction. That's why I'm going to ask them to do this date thing."

"And you getting a date with Nikki has nothing to do with it," Cye said with the raise of an eyebrow.

"Instant karma for doing a good deed," Rowen grinned back.

Neither Halo nor Torrent looked that happy for him, but Rowen ignored them. "Remember, we want to get her something that will really make Ryo put his hands all over her and never let her go."

"I can't believe I just heard you say that," Cye said flatly.

"I'll even pay for the dress."

"No," both Cye and Sage insisted at the same time.

"Fine, just whatever you get, make sure it's dead sexy."

Cye still wasn't sure he was comfortable with whoring out Robyn to his teammate, even if it meant getting what they all wanted. They were standing in a dress store he had never been before. Sage was the one that took them there. A good thing, too. Cye only knew of places to get gowns for high school dances. This place was pretty posh. A bit more high class than he was used to.

Sage had made himself at home, rifling through dresses as if he worked there. Maybe he just wanted to quickly be done and get out. He picked out three dresses and herded Robyn into a fitting room.

There she dallied for several minutes, claiming she didn't like the first two dresses enough to show them off before trying on the third. Sage had already wandered off to look for other options while Cye sat in boredom.

"Cye, can you help me with the zipper?" came a soft request.

Finally, he thought as he stood.

Robyn backed out of the dressing room, holding her hair out of the way as Cye zipped her up. She turned around and his eyes widened. The dress was deep blue with an old fashioned silhouette made to cut tight at the waist and accentuate her hips and bust. It made her look more mature and cultured. And definitely more curvy.

"Hey Cye, what do you think about this one?" Sage asked as he approached, holding up a plumb colored dress. Then he noticed Robyn. "Woah, hot."

Robyn looked a bit surprised at a comment like that, from Sage of all people. Then she turned around to inspect herself in the mirror, turning at different angles. She did look good in that dress. Probably better than she had ever looked in anything.

"I like it. What do you guys think?"

The two men checked with each other and it was unanimous.

"Oh yeah," Cye confirmed, "That's the dress."

Robyn then looked at the price tag and squeaked. "Oh wait, this is too much. I can't afford it."

"It's on us. You're getting that dress," Sage insisted in a tone that didn't leave room for argument.

As Robyn went to change, the two Ronins stayed quiet next to each other. But Cye noticed it was a different kind of silence than what had been before. It wasn't as uncomfortable and painful any more. Something was healing. Their friendship was slowly coming back, and for the first time since Cassie's death, Cye remembered what it was like to treasure his friend's presence and his understanding.

"Hey," he said quietly, catching Sage's attention. "I didn't say it the other day, but I should have. I love you, too."

The blond gave him an inquisitive look, but then settled into a satisfied expression.

Robyn stepped out, dress in hand and a female employee approached them. "How are we doing here?" she asked brightly. "Are you finding everything okay?"

"Yes, I believe we're getting this," Robyn said, though she checked with her escorts to make sure they were still okay with buying it.

"Great, I can ring that up for you right now. Come with me." The assistant took the dress and led them to a register. "You are so lucky to have such good looking friends to come with you."

"Yes I am," Robyn beamed.

"They make such an adorable couple, too."

All three gaped at her.

Robyn recovered first. "They do," she said with a huge grin at them.

Sage's eyes were still wide until Cye suddenly beamed as he threaded their arms together, deciding it would make Robyn happy if he played along. He also took a measure of personal joy doing something that irritated Sage.

Plus it was so hard not to laugh as Sage sighed and went along with it, paying for the dress as stoically as possible, with Cye still hanging merrily on his arm. His frown just made it all the more funny. The customer service girl had no idea how wrong she was.

Robyn rescued Sage from Cye when they stepped out of the store and gave him a quick kiss on the side of his face for being a good sport.

* * *

Okay, so maybe Ryo had played it a little cool with Rowen about the whole date thing. A date with Robyn was nerve-racking enough, if in a good way. A fancy date with Robyn? Unless flannel shirts or feudal age mystic armor was appropriate attire, Ryo was going to need some help with this.

It was instinctive that the first person he called was Mia. She had always been Ryo's connection to the more complicated things in life: bank accounts, insurance, the property he had purchased where he one day wanted to build a house…all of those things had been gained through Mia's guidance. Naturally, she was the one he would turn to on this matter as well. It wasn't until the phone had started ringing that it occurred to Ryo, Mia might not be willing to help him.

But this was Mia and, no matter what happened, she loved her boys. Not only was Mia willing offer fashion advice, she insisted on taking him shopping. Ryo had never purchased a dress suit in his life, and Mia said she didn't want him just randomly grabbing whatever he saw hanging on the racks.

An hour later, when he was pretty sure that Mia should have been at work instead of helping him, both she and Nikki were testing different colors against his complexion while he was being measured for slacks. That's right, he was being measured. By a dude. Up his leg.

Ryo couldn't possibly imagine something more out of his comfort zone.

"You look like you're considering going off to battle, Ryo," Mia murmured, eyes dancing in amusement as she texted something into her work phone.

"I'm going on a double date with Rowen," Ryo reminded her, frowning at the little man poking a tape measure too close to his crotch. "How long does this part take?"

Mia craned her head to get a better look. "Depends on how angular you are," she replied seriously.

Ryo's face grew confused for a moment, until he realized that she was teasing him. It had been a long time since Mia had teased him, and Ryo huffed in good nature. This was very much out of his comfort zone and he could do little else but stand there and let the women do as they wished with him, but he liked seeing the pair of them together. When alone, Mia and Nikki were much more relaxed, and a lot more fun.

Currently, Nikki had two different shirts in which she was taking turns holding up to him. "Hmm…the blue really brings out your eyes. But this purple would look good on you, too. And not a lot of guys can pull off purple."

Ryo had no opinion on either one. He didn't know about this kind of stuff. He dressed for comfort and for whatever was cheap.

"Don't Dais him, Nikki," Mia disagreed, shaking her head as the tailor rose and stepped a few feet away to write down his measurements. "Cale him instead. He always looked hot."

"Grey suit and maroon shirt? I don't know, Mia. Now a black suit and yellow shirt, like that one guy in that picture…the one with the chain thingies…"

Wildfire cleared his throat, giving them both a look as he glanced pointedly at the tailor and grumped under his breath, "I'm not going out on a date looking like whatever warlord you two think was hottest."

Both women smiled innocently at him. When Mia's phone rang—presumably work replying to her text message—it didn't pass Ryo's notice that she was headed for a maroon rack of shirts as she answered. Nikki had ditched the purple shirt and was pressing the blue one back to Ryo's chest, her faced scrunched cutely as she tried to decide.

"So are you okay with this tonight, Nikki?" Ryo asked softly when the two were by themselves. "Rowen isn't forcing you into this or anything is he? I don't want you to feel uncomfortable."

Nikki smiled again, a little quirk of her lips. "I'm…I'm not sure what I am. But Rowen's been almost…sweet the last couple days. He knows I'm bored, and he keeps ditching life to come hang out with me at Mia's. Nothing bad has happened, and it seems like he's trying to keep the peace. He's been making an effort for me, so I want to do the same for him. Plus, I think it could be fun."

"You're sure you're okay with this."

Nikki gave him that same kind of look one would reserve for a sleeping puppy. "Yes, I'm sure. You still worry as much as you ever did, Ryo."

He put his hand on her shoulder, squeezing. "You were always important to us, Nik. Of course I'm going to worry about you."

This time Nikki surprised Ryo by leaning in and hugging him. She liked Ryo. He was less intense than the others; less guarded and accusing. Far easier to be around. To his surprise, she had moisture in her eyes, but she was smiling still.

"Are you okay?" he asked, worried he had said something wrong.

"You being so nice always did get to us, Ryo," Nikki told him, chuckling at herself as she wiped her face with the back of her hand. "You could say the same thing the other guys would say, but something about you saying it always made us end up bawling. It's like you have this 'good guy charm', or something. But yeah, I'm looking forward to the date, and I'm glad you'll be there, too."

Ryo blinked in surprise at that, and wasn't sure what to say. Instead he changed the subject to something safer. "So, are you going to have anything to wear for this?"

Before Nikki could answer, Mia popped in with some clothes in her hands. "Nikki, try on this outfit for me. You'll look great."

"And there she goes," Nikki said with a bit of dry humor. "She's going to have us both trying on the entire store by the time we're done." But she left with the offered skirt and top while Mia took her place in front of Ryo. The tall brunette had produced a white dress shirt and a red tie. She threaded it around Wildfire's neck, after he shrugged the shirt on and started buttoning it.

As Mia went about tugging and tying, Ryo thought about what Nikki had said, about him being nice always getting to them. He was glad it helped him get closer to Nikki, but the person he really cared about was the one in front of him. He didn't like the idea of using his good guy charm, as the brunette had put it, but he missed her.

He missed her so much, and he wanted her back, and Ryo had always fought for the things he wanted.

"Thanks for coming out with me," Ryo said to Mia quietly. "It's good to see you again."

"Yeah, this is fun," she agreed. "Hmm…maybe we should Dais you. Red seems kind of redundant."

Ryo took a deep breath and forged on ahead. "I miss you. I miss going out to lunch together and you fixing my collar. And I miss your smile. Can we- do you think we could start doing things together again?"

Mia blinked, and then he saw her start to cave. "Yeah, Ryo, I would like that. Very much," she said softly, fixing his collar right there. "I miss seeing you, too." Then she added. "So how serious are you with Robyn? Or is this just something Rowen cooked up?"

"No, Mia. I really like her. Though, I think I like her more than she likes me," he admitted.

Mia kept her thoughts to herself as she adjusted his shirt. Silently, she thought Robyn to be crazy for not returning Wildire's affections. What girl wouldn't want to be his? Though Mia never really thought of Robyn as someone with much common sense. And yet she had been the one to ask Robyn what she would have done in her place. What was she thinking asking the redhead anything? And Robyn had given her a lot to chew on to boot.

Nikki then popped in to interrupt her thoughts. "What do you think, guys?" she asked as she modeled the outfit Mia had picked. The navy, long sleeved boat neck top left her shoulders bared, and it paired nicely with the fitted black skirt.

"Not bad, Nik," Ryo approved.

"You like it?" Mia asked.

Nikki checked out herself in the mirror. "I like the skirt, but the top is kind of clingy though." She paused and noticed Ryo. "Oh Mia, he looks like he's going to a job interview."

"He does, doesn't he?" she worried. "I'm usually better at this."

"That's because you still think of him like he's your little brother," Nikki accused. "Ryo's a grown man. He's strong and good looking, and girls would love to get their hands on that. So help him get some handling, woman."

Ryo was turning a little red. Nikki didn't seem to notice. "We need to find him something that will cause his date to keep her attention him."

"And away from Rowen?" Mia added, grinning wickedly as Nikki blushed and protested.

"I never said that."

"You didn't have to."

"….does she really have to hang all over them that much?"

"She doesn't hang all over us!" Ryo suddenly protested, sounding as though he wished he got more hanging on than he did.

Mia and Nikki simultaneously sent him a look that suggested he wasn't invited to this conversation.

"Let's try the Anubis look," Mia announced. "Quick, find me a yellow shirt."

Ryo found it wise just to sit there and let the two women have their way with him.

* * *

It rained that evening, the heavy clouds seeming to come out of nowhere and bringing a rather cold breeze with it. Nikki frowned at the grayness outside. She had spent her entire life in warm, sunny Los Angeles, and had never been able to get used to the changing weather of other places. And of course, the one night she was really looking forward to going out, the weather just had to be all gross and wet, and cold. Typical.

"Mia, can I borrow an umbrella tonight?" she called when she heard the other woman moving around down the hall.

"I think there's a few in the hall closet. I'll have to go look," her distant voice replied.

Nikki went back to primping in the mirror. All her bandages were removed now, but she still had a few fine cuts on her face. She had been dabbing at them with a makeup sponge for nearly twenty minutes, washing her face and trying all over again, in her attempt to make them disappear.

Maybe it was shallow to think about, but all three of her companions tonight were attractive. Ryo was good looking in that handsome, muscular, boy-next-door kind of way. Rowen was good looking in that tall, lanky, brooding intellect way. And Robyn was exotic with that red hair and those bright green eyes on her Asian features. Nikki definitely felt like the odd man out, plain and dull, and very non-Japanese.

There had been a time that her being different from him had attracted Rowen to her, as much as her mind and her fieriness had. But that was then, this was now, and she wasn't really sure what attracted Rowen anymore. As she ignored the stinging of a particularly deep scratch on her jaw, Nikki told herself that she shouldn't care. She shouldn't care what attracted Rowen, because it was all in the past anyway. She and Rowen weren't together. She was leaving, the way she always did, and that meant that they wouldn't be getting back together.

So it made absolutely no sense that she was trying like hell to look pretty, and to cover up the abrasions on her face.

Only, he stared at her face when she wasn't looking. The last couple days, when they watched TV on the couch, or sat out by the pier, just talking. Rowen was always staring at all her many little cuts. They bothered him, made him feel guilty, and Nikki didn't want that from him. Yeah, he'd screwed up. But she was okay, and she didn't want him to have to see that mistake every time he looked at her. It was too close to the feeling she always had when she looked at him…like she had screwed up.

No. No, Nikki didn't want that for him.

She didn't want him to feel bad, and so she had agreed to this date, and now she was perspiring from nerves. Nikki wanted to roll her eyes at herself. The guy had seen her naked, for goodness sakes, far more than once. He'd seen her at her worst. But…but she'd seen him at his best, and so it was hard not to stare in the mirror and wish…and wish that maybe for just one night…

"I think that might be Rowen pulling up now," Mia said as she walked by the doorway, pulling Nikki from her thoughts. The shorter woman yelped and shot Mia a desperate look, quickly trying to finish applying all her make up. If only she hadn't spent so much time on her hair.

Mia walked over to the nearest window and poked her head out as the thunder rolled. "Rowen, come in and get out of the rain, we'll be down in a minute." She pulled back in, hair slightly damp. "It's sure pouring out there, but he's got an umbrella. You should be okay."

Nikki stared at her reflection, trying to tug a tendril of hair over the contusion on her forehead. "I look like a battered woman."

"You look great," Mia told her, leaning against the door frame. "He'll think you look great, Nikki."

She turned, her smile a little shaky. "Thanks." Nikki let out a shuttering breath. "Mia, why am I so nervous? This is stupid, I'm already sweating."

"You'll be fine, Nik. You'll have fun."

The shorter woman turned her gaze over to her friend. "Do you hate me for going out and leaving you here alone?"

Mia almost laughed. "With as many times as I've left you for work? I'll be fine. Maybe I'll find something to do with myself tonight, too. Go to a movie or something."

"Bring your pepper spray," Nikki shot back playfully, to which Mia simply shook her head and did laugh this time.

"Kento gets pepper sprayed once, and you never let me forget it."

"Who shot Kento with pepper spray?" a masculine voice called from the floor below.

"If he never told you, neither will we, Rowen," Mia called back.

Rowen was waiting patiently at the bottom of the stairs, dripping umbrella by the door. A smirk was already forming as the two descended. Nikki almost slid with her heels on the wood steps. She wasn't used to shoes like these. As she hoped they would, Rowen's eyes went right to her legs.

"What's with that smirk?" Nikki asked, arching an eyebrow as she retrieved her coat from the back of a chair. "See something you like?"

"I do," he said simply, eyes still all on her. "You should turn around so I can see the back."

Nikki rolled her eyes at him, but found herself grinning as she briefly indulged him. "It's the same ass it always was, Rowen."

"Naw, it's a little scrawnier than it was before, but I'm not complaining."

Nikki stuck her tongue out at him as she shrugged on her coat. Rowen moved to assist her and Nikki felt her cheeks grow warm just to have his taller form looming over her. "So who shot Kento with pepper spray?" he whispered in her ear, warm breath tickling her neck, and Nikki laughed.

"Ask him. We're sworn to secrecy."

"You two have fun," Mia called in a bit of a motherly tone as they headed out the door. "Drive safe in that weather."

Rowen opened his umbrella on the porch, and Nikki ducked under it, keeping tight to his side as they hurried to his car. It was different than his last one, used but not nearly as battered, and only one door's paint job didn't match the rest of it. It didn't smell as weird when she climbed inside, and there was a seat belt on the passenger side this time.

It was only when Rowen shut her door and quickly ran around the car, slipping into the driver's side, that Nikki suddenly realized how much she didn't want to be in a car with Rowen driving.

Not in the least. Not at all.

As if he could sense that, Rowen kept his keys in his hand, although he was playing with them idly. "Hey Nik? On a scale of one to ten, how much does me driving you somewhere scare you?"

Nikki didn't reply, but she did grit her teeth and fasten her seat belt. "I'm cold, Rowen."

Those blue eyes that could see through everyone and everything tried to cut through her, cut through her bullshit, but it wasn't bullshit because Nikki was cold. So she reached over and grabbed his hand, pushing it towards the ignition. "Rowen, seriously, I'm freezing."

Strata hesitated only a moment longer, and then he nodded, turning on the car and cranking up the heater. "I'm going to drive safe," he promised her.

"Good. 'Cause this time, I'll kick your ass if you don't. Rowen? Isn't this supposed to be sending out hot air?"

Rowen put his hand in front of the vent closest to him. "Ummm…maybe? I got a good deal on it because it was a little buggy. There were some things I wasn't supposed to use, but I thought that at least the heater worked…"

"I'm going to die."

"You're not going to die," Rowen promised as he put the vehicle in reverse, ignoring the grinding of gears and the wide eyed look of horror on Nikki's face. "This car is new, so that you would have a clean escort to the ball m'lady."

"New to you. Seriously Rowen, this is the POS car reincarnated."

"No, it's new!" Rowen insisted. "It just was in a…little…accident…hmmm. Is that smoke coming out from the hood? Maybe the heater was the thing I wasn't supposed to turn on."

As Rowen rolled the car to a stop and hopped out to figure out what was on fire, Nikki slouched in her seat and decided that all those makeup attempts hadn't been worth it. Because this was Japan, and Nikki had learned her lesson very well about sequences of events in Japan.

"Shit…Uh, Nik? You're not going to believe this…"

Yeah, they were gonna die.

* * *

They didn't die, but something else had.

Between the pair of them, and their highly trained analytical minds, neither Rowen nor Nikki could figure out just what had died under the hood of Rowen's "new" car. They did know that the heater was making it start to smell bad, and that however it had died, had been a bad way to go. Rowen had never had a date start off with prying something's carcass off of his engine block with the end of an umbrella, but he didn't think that Nikki needed to freak that much when it popped off and almost hit her foot.

The key word was almost.

The car stopped smoking after Rowen drained a couple spare bottles of water into the coolant overflow, and the crisis seemed to be averted. Strata learned that trying to cuddle his cold date in the rain was one of those things that was more romantic when one didn't have "grotty roadkill hands", and that purses could and would be used to defend herself from "nasty umbrellas". Rowen was having fun, but his date was looking less impressed by the minute.

Despite her not giving him hell about their car accident, Nikki still seemed a little edgy riding shotgun. So Rowen drove slowly and carefully all the way into town. It didn't seem possible, but the rain poured even harder by the time they arrived at their destination. Neither one particularly wanted to use the umbrella, and water got into Nikki's shoes as they hurried under the cover of the entrance outside the restaurant, both soaking wet.

"Should have done valet parking, cheapskate," she told him a bit scathingly, her teeth chattering as they made it under the awning.

"The meal itself is probably going to break me," Rowen frowned as he shook his coat a little.

"You chose the place," Nikki reminded Rowen as the doorman let them in. "At this point, I'm fine with anywhere that has a heater."

Rowen grinned at her and moved a wet strand of brunette hair out of her eyes. "Lowering your standards already, Nik?"

Nikki rolled her eyes but didn't answer. Ryo and Robyn were already at the restaurant, looking nice and dry. They were sitting in the waiting area, Ryo in a dinner jacket looking comfortable. Robyn was wrapped in a long evening coat, glaring at the rain outside. Her arms had been tucked up against her body until Ryo took her hands in attempts to warm them up.

"Great night for a dinner," Ryo grinned, not getting up. He looked amused at the state of dishevelment of the other couple.

"Adds to the enchantment of the evening," Rowen shrugged, running a hand through his already messy hair. "How much longer?"

"We already requested a table," Robyn supplied helpfully. "They said it should be any minute."

Nikki watched the two snuggled there. Mia said Robyn was a bit cozy with all of the Ronins. While they were all at the house, Nikki hadn't really noticed the redhead paying any mind to one of them specifically. Not much thought was given when Nikki was approached with the double date idea. She just assumed Rowen picked Ryo because he was currently the most well adjusted of the group. But watching the couple sit together, she thought for the first time maybe there was something going on between the two of them.

"Your table is ready," a stiff man in a sharp suit said to them. "Please follow me."

The four were led deeper into the building, past the bar in the front, to a collection of tables bedecked in white linen. They were arranged in front of a wide dance floor with a live band playing gentle, slow music on stage.

"Your waiter will be with you momentarily," the host said as he handed them each a menu. "Enjoy."

"Wow, this place is pretty fancy," Nikki commented as the group took off their rain soaked coats.

"I told you," Rowen insisted as he helped her with her jacket, "we were going to do something special tonight."

Ryo was helping Robyn with her long evening coat when it was finally revealed what she was wearing underneath. The deep blue made her hair look an even brighter shade of red.

"Woah," Rowen blurted out. "Hot."

Robyn raised an eyebrow at him. "Those were Sage's exact words when he picked out this dress."

"He's got good taste." Rowen leaned back casually in his seat. He was going to have to tip that man. "Give us a twirl so we can see it."

For a moment, all Nikki could do was stare at him, shocked. She had always known that Rowen was a flirt. The thing was, he had never flirted with someone else in front of her. He might have been a flirt, but Rowen was also kind of a gentleman, and when they were together, his attention had always been completely on her. Her attention had always been completely on him. So Nikki had never been in a situation where she had watched Rowen turn his focus to someone else, and openly ogle them. And he was definitely ogling Robyn. True, the redhead did look gorgeous, and true, the two men at their table weren't the only men in the restaurant staring at her.

But still. It was…embarrassing. And it hurt. And she had no idea that Rowen's attention on Robyn was being done deliberately for Ryo's benefit. Not that Wildfire needed any further encouragement. He was standing there dumbly, coat still hanging from his fingers with a besot expression on his face. Robyn then became uncomfortable with the two men staring at her. She crossed her arms over herself and sat down, scooting in her own chair. Ryo then found enough of his mind to drape her coat over the extra chair at their table.

"You look very nice," Ryo managed to cough out when he found his voice.

Robyn breathed out heavily. "Thank you," she said without gratitude in her voice. She looked as though she now had a different opinion of the man who had picked out the dress for her.

Maybe Robyn could tell that Nikki was getting her feelings hurt, because she aimed a frown at Rowen. "Eyes somewhere else, buddy."

Rowen was still leering and Ryo frowned before kicking him in the shin. To which Rowen promptly kicked him back. Annoyed, Ryo kicked Rowen a second time, causing both to glare at each other threateningly.

Robyn gave them both an annoyed glare and then locked eyes with Nikki, giving her that wide-eyed "I can't believe we're stuck with these idiots" type look. Nikki silently nodded in agreement. It wasn't the redhead's fault that Rowen was staring at her still, or that Ryo seemed to be reacting to it by growing territorial. Nope, that was Rowen's fault, and Nikki wasn't sure whether to tell him he was a jerk or to just walk out.

"Rowen, quit it! Ryo, he's just trying to rile you up."

"I'm fine," Ryo insisted in a growl, his hand covering Robyn's. A hand that was unmarked and blemish free.

Nikki blinked. "Hey, the other day I saw you with all those bandages. Now I don't see a scratch on you." Nikki's eyes wandered over Robyn's face and bare arms. She was about to ask what concealer Robyn used when the redhead spoke.

"I have regenerative saliva," Robyn said with all serious. "I just lick it and it goes away." The table went quiet. Rowen and Ryo both realized they were waiting for Cye to yell at her. But Cye wasn't there. "Like a vampire," Robyn added in the pause, grinning wide.

"Yeah? Too bad that doesn't come stock standard for everyone," Nikki quipped back, used to comments like that from this group.

"I'll lick you if you like, Nikki."

"Oh, I second that," Rowen agreed. "I would like to see that very much."

"You would," both girls shot at him at the same time. Ryo stayed quiet. He still had no idea how she had recovered from so many injuries so fast. After talking to the guys about it, they had decided as a group just to let it go for now, at least until the waters between all of them were a bit calmer. Ryo hated it. He hated not knowing.

The waiter came to take their orders, forcing the group to pay more attention to the menu. Robyn's eyes grew to twice their size when she saw the prices. She tried to order something small, but Ryo countered with insisting she was just going to pick at his plate with such meager portions so she might as well get what she wanted. Robyn was trying to ignore Rowen, who had leaned back and was still eying her openly and appreciatively. Ryo was busy eying Rowen, but not appreciatively. Robyn kept trying to make small talk with everyone, but Ryo kept trying to pull Robyn's attention back to him. The more Rowen stared, the more riled up Ryo got, and the more hands-on Ryo was becoming. He was touching Robyn's hand, and arm, and then her shoulders.

If Rowen didn't quit it, either Ryo was going to end up punching him, or Ryo was going to end up dragging Robyn into his lap…

On her side of the table, Nikki finally realized exactly what Rowen was doing. She stifled a laugh, and then proceeded to start staring at Ryo, just because she could. It didn't bother Robyn in the least, and Ryo didn't notice, but at least Ryo was something nice to look at.

Apparently Rowen was ignoring her tonight, no matter what his ulterior motives, and that was kind of mean. So Nikki cheerfully ordered the most expensive thing she could find as punishment for her date's behavior. Though to Rowen's credit, he didn't even blink as she piled on the cost.

He could have told her his plans for tonight, but maybe Rowen had assumed she'd figure it all out herself. She certainly wouldn't have gone along with it if he'd warned her ahead of time, so she couldn't blame him for being sneaky. As they waited for their food in a sort of awkward silence, only Nikki seemed to be relaxed, now that she was in on it.

Ryo certainly hadn't figured it out. Wildfire kept glowering at Rowen as if the two were having some sort of silent argument. Maybe they were.

"Rowen," Ryo finally spoke out loud. "I would say yes in hopes it would get it out of your system, but I don't know if Robyn-"

"No, no. It's fine," she said as she stood. She leveled her green eyes on Rowen's sitting form and they weren't altogether approving. She beckoned Strata with a finger. "You, come see me in my office."

"Yes ma'am," Rowen said as he hopped up and eagerly followed her to the dance floor.

It was only then that Ryo noticed Nikki's watching him, and he shifted under the attention. "Um, would you like to dance, Nik?" He felt bad for her, after how Rowen had been acting. But instead of looking hurt or angry, but Nikki seemed to be enjoying the really expensive crab cakes she'd ordered as an appetizer, the ones she refused to share with Rowen.

"Hmm? Oh, no. No, that's okay, Ryo."

She turned her eyes to the dance floor as Ryo did the same thing. Nikki didn't miss a thing as she saw Rowen rest a hand on the redhead's hip and take her hand, and yeah, it did make her a little jealous. But it was nothing compared to the look of utter annoyance on Ryo's face, and Nikki had to hide her grin behind her wine glass. When Rowen decided to do something, he certainly did it all out. To be honest, Nikki was dying to know what Rowen and Robyn were talking about.

"I'm onto you, buster," was what Robyn was saying, to Rowen's bemused expression.

"I'm sure I don't know what you mean," Strata replied innocently, twirling Robyn in a circle and dipping her. He made sure to eye her chest appreciatively, and somewhere back at the table Ryo was close to melting his salad fork with his bare hand.

"I'm serious. Stop looking at me like that, I don't like it."

Rowen glanced from her form to her face and saw Robyn's cheeks flushed with discomfort, her eyes unhappy. "Sorry," he said, ruse falling apart before her.

"Not as sorry as you're going to be if I let Ryo drag you out into the parking lot."

Rowen let out a chuckle. "Yes, yes. You have a scary boyfriend, I get it."

Robyn opened her mouth to immediately protest that statement, then reconsidered. "I know what you're trying to do and I'm cutting you off. You need to pay attention to your date or she's going to stop being amused by your antics. And I know you love this girl. After this dance, you do nothing else but pay attention to her and make sure she has an amazing time."

Rowen glanced over to the table where Nikki was hiding her grin from Ryo. "She's so pretty, isn't she?"

"Don't tell me. Tell her, you big dummy," Robyn shot back. "And you dance with her as many times as she wants, no complaints."

Rowen laughed. "Now who's trying to hook who up?"

"I'm doing you a favor," Robyn insisted, unrepentant. "You've finally found someone who will put up with you. You shouldn't let her go, there may not be another one."

"Ouch. Lady, you are hard on the ego."

Robyn smirked at him. "It's tough love, Strata." With that, she turned from his arms and walked back to the table. The song hadn't even finished yet. But Rowen seemed fine with it as he strolled behind her, hands in his pockets as if we were on an evening walk.

Ryo stood as they approached, pushing Robyn's seat in for her and she appeared more appreciative of his attention that time. Rowen just plopped himself in his chair, his crystalline eyes swiveling over to land heavily on Nikki. She was mid-bite of a piece of bread and butter when he smiled.

"Hey gorgeous. Did I forget to tell ya you're the prettiest girl here tonight?"

Nikki smirked and swallowed. "Did I forget to tell you I ordered myself a bottle of champagne while you were dancing? But only for me, you have to get your own. Maybe Ryo will share with you."

Rowen barked out a laugh and then leaned in and whispered something in her ear, causing Nikki to flush and then slap him on the shoulder. Rowen was chuckling, but his fingers had threaded through hers under the table. And just like that, it was how it had always been.

"Thanks for doing this with me," Rowen said softly, to which Nikki murmured that she didn't mind being his partner in crime, at least for one evening.

By the time the food came, both Nikki and Rowen were lost in their own discussion, a physics debate that Ryo wasn't even trying to follow anymore. But neither seemed to realize how close they were sitting, how Rowen kept stealing bites of Nikki's food, or how Nikki kept absently tugging his collar to straighten that which never stayed straightened. Rowen never noticed how much she was leaning in towards him, or how her hand kept inadvertently reaching for his when she grew particularly excited by their topic. Nikki never noticed how Rowen's eyes would brighten when she'd counter his logic with her own, or how often his eyes dropped to her lips.

Robyn looked satisfied for them as she and Ryo continued to merely sit companionably side by side.

* * *

They were all supposed to meet at seven. Frankly, Mia didn't think that anyone would show.

She had fretted and worried about the evening from the moment that she hung up her phone. Maybe it had been a cop out to call Kento first. She still wasn't entirely comfortable around him yet, but she wasn't sure Cye and Sage would even want to talk to her.

Though the conversation was brief and awkward, Kento had gruffly agreed to going out to eat and told her that he'd tell Sage and Cye to meet them too. But Mia hadn't been able to relax. It hadn't passed her notice that despite everything that had (or hadn't really) happened between them, Kento had saved her the discomfort of calling Cye and Sage herself.

That had been nice of him.

As she stood outside of the trendy little fondue restaurant, wondering if she was waiting for Kento only, Mia realized that there was very few times Hardrock wasn't nice to her. It didn't occur to her that he might not show, because if Kento said he would do something, he did it. She supposed that in the same respects, if Kento said Sage and Cye were coming, then they would be coming, whether or not Kento had to pick the other two Ronins up by the scruffs of their necks and drag them. And sure enough, at exactly five minutes before their scheduled meeting time, a familiar car rolled into the parking lot and three men stepped out.

For some reason Cye was driving, and Sage had that slightly stressed look around his eyes that he always had when someone else besides him was in control of a vehicle. Mia remembered their trip to the mountain together, when they had been looking for Kento and how Sage had been so tired. It had been the only time that he hadn't been stressed about someone else driving.

His face turned to hers, and for a moment she was back there, so long ago, running blindly to go face an enemy, to buy Sage more time. She was frozen in a waterfall, a silent scream on her lips, and then she had been in his arms as he had saved her. Sage had saved her. Ryo had saved her. They had all saved her at one time or another.

Was it so bad that she had tried to save them for a change?

There were three heads turned her way now, three bodies shutting their doors and walking towards Mia, so she tried to pull herself out of the past and into the present. They missed her, Ryo had said earlier. They'd want to spend time with her, if she still wanted to spend time with them. And she did.

She had meant to say thanks for coming, but as the group of guys approached and Mia opened her mouth, what came out was a softer, more vulnerable, "You came."

Maybe she sounded surprised, but Kento stepped up to her first, and moving slowly— as if not to startle her— the large man wrapped his arms around her in a gentle hug. "Of course we came," he told Mia, giving her a warm, if somewhat shy smile. "Thanks for inviting us."

"Everyone else is having fun tonight, so why shouldn't we?" Cye spoke up from behind Kento, and then he too moved forward and hugged her. Sage's version of a hug was a nod, his eyes briefly grazing over her face, and the pressure of his hand on her shoulder.

They had always been good at following Wildfire into dangerous situations, but when Ryo was taken out of the equation, the remaining Ronins tended to push themselves, each trying to take control of the situation and thus the brunt of the danger. Maybe they were all a little nervous too, because as the group walked into the restaurant, that's exactly what they did. Kento and Sage both mobbed the hostess' station, each starting to announce their party's name and number at the same time Cye suggested that they all avoid a wait and eat in the bar. Sage stepped towards the bar at the same time Cye stepped towards the main dining area, and Kento seemed to get confused, so he shuffled closer to Mia, frowning a little.

He'd been doing that since he was sixteen.

When Sage and Cye both started to go back towards their original directions, Mia couldn't help it and started laughing. She didn't even have to explain why, because the guys knew exactly what she found funny. Mia had been teasing them about this same stuff since she had been nineteen. Cye snickered when Sage rolled his eyes, and the hostess must have thought they were addled when the three moved away simultaneously to just let Mia deal with it. That at least they could do in tandem, they'd been letting Ryo handle things for years now.

When they were shown their table, a booth on the far side of the restaurant, Sage slid in first. Cye snickered when Halo gave him a flat stare. "You're not sitting next to me, Cye."

Despite his words, Sage didn't sound annoyed, and Cye actually laughed. "Aww, Sage doesn't want me anymore."

Kento chuckled at Mia's confusion as he scooted into the booth across from Sage. "Cye's been sexually harassing Sage all day. Don't worry, Sage likes it, he's just playing hard to get."

There were two seats. One next to Sage and one next to Kento. She hesitated, wondering if either one would want to sit next to her, and she could feel them watching her again.

A hand rested on her hip, a warm arm across her lower back, and Mia found herself being squeezed gently. "Mia, we all want to sit next to you," Cye promised her, his voice quiet and kind in her ear. "And we appreciate you wanting to do this tonight."

Sage leaned over and grabbed her hand, his skin against hers immediately making her feel a rush of relaxation. Maybe Halo was healing her, or maybe it was just how it felt to have Sage's fingers threaded through her own. "Mia's with me. Go grope Kento for a while, Cye."

Torrent laughed again, and both of them moved to their respective seats.

Dinner ended up being fun. Mia didn't talk a lot, but she did find herself grinning more than not at their antics. True to form, Hardrock kept stabbing his bread cubes too hard and losing them in the melted cheese pot. Also true to form, Torrent's miniature trident rescued the drowning bread cubes before Hardrock could recover them. And- because no matter how old they got, her boys would always be boys- Sage grew fed up with the both of them and stabbed all the remaining bread cubes onto his own weaponry, holding them hostage until a peaceful resolution could be made. Unfortunately these guys were made for battle, not peacetime, and Sage quickly found himself being flanked by hungry Ronins.

Mia was pretty sure that the best resolution would be her stealing the last of the cheese with her apple slices while the other three were busy destroying things.

It wasn't until the cheese and meat fondues had been consumed, that Mia realized how much she was enjoying this. The waiter placed a bowl of molten chocolate in front of her, and she made a small noise of pleasure as she dipped a particularly large strawberry into the bowl. Mia purred a little louder as she bit into the treat, and only then did she realize that everyone was watching her, grinning the identical grins of two young men watching an attractive woman making sex noises. The third wasn't grinning, but he did have a particularly well sculpted eyebrow raised.

"S'good," Mia mumbled around her mouthful, blushing red as she realized she had chocolate dripping at the corner of her mouth. She quickly swallowed and wiped her mouth, and then found herself blushing even more furiously as Cye shoved the rest of his strawberries her way.

"You can have mine, Mia," he said cheerfully, winking at her.

"Yup, mine too," Kento agreed, tugging on his collar as if it suddenly felt tighter, but still grinning like an idiot.

Sage sighed and pushed his over as well. "It's the closest anyone tonight will be to getting laid," Halo said, crooking a little smile of his own. "No matter what you and I made Robyn wear, or how hard Rowen tries."

Mia picked up another strawberry, one of Kento's, and then shot them a smug look. After all, she had been the one to dress Ryo, and Mia had seen enough popcorn and cuddling on her couch this week to know whom had what chances with whom. Dipping the strawberry into its bath of chocolate, she grinned naughtily.

"Wanna bet?"

* * *

Conversation picked up over dinner. First comments of how good the food was. Then Robyn picking at everyone else's plate, mostly Ryo's, tasting what everyone else ordered. She looked so funny completely covered in napkins, determined not to get a single crumb on her dress.

Her enthusiasm for eating was what really lightened the mood at the table. Nikki found herself liking the redhead more. Especially since she didn't spare Rowen another glance the entire night. In fact, most of her attention stayed on Nikki, asking her what part of the States she resided and what she did for a living.

Rowen seemed very pleased that the girls were talking. Then he wiped his mouth on a napkin and stood, announcing he and Nikki would be right back. With her hand in his, the brunette happily followed him out onto the dance floor. Nikki was almost giddy when he touched her hip. She put her hand on his arm, feeling the lean taunt muscles underneath the silky black shirt he was wearing.

"Oh, I like this," she approved, running her hand up his arm to feel the texture.

"It's my date shirt," Rowen responded with a wiggle of his eyebrows. "So the girls won't want to stop touching." His hand sank a little lower, not so subtly feeling the curve of her ass.

Nikki gave him a serious look. "I'm not having sex with you tonight."

Those crystal blue eyes fluttered at her. "Uh, okay," he said, not prepared for that statement.

"I'm serious Rowen, no sex. Whatever else you have planned for tonight, I'm not sleeping with you." Nikki glanced away from him, frowning. Then her expression softened as she turned to look back into his eyes. "I care about you, and I'm enjoying being with you tonight. But I don't want to go back to the way we were before, I'm terrified of it. If something else happens between us, I want it to be better, deeper than before. Not just cheap, tawdry nights and arguments in between." She suddenly looked a little timid and her voice came out small. "Can you- could you want that, too?"

Rowen's expression grew gentle and he reached over to kiss her forehead. "Yeah Nik," he said in a voice that made her chest flutter. "I want that, too." He hesitated, and then murmured softly in her ear, "But for the record, we were never cheap and tawdry."

Nikki smiled at that, and leaned her head on his shoulder. Then she laughed as Rowen snuck another feel of her ass, adding teasingly. "You were cheap and tawdry, Nik, but I was a perfect gentleman."

She smacked his arm, still laughing, and then squealed as he snatched her up tighter to his chest, spinning them both around in circles.

From the table, Robyn watched them, chin propped up with one hand. "Aw, they're adorable together."

"Would you want to dance?" Ryo asked her.

"Do you?" Robyn challenged back, looking perfectly content to stay where she was. She was still scraping mushroom sauce from her plate, licking her fork.

"Actually, this is nice like this, having a few moments to ourselves."

Robyn made a sound of agreement, still licking her fork.

Ryo caught her attention by placing his hand on hers. "Actually, I have a confession to make." he said lowly.

Curious, Robyn leaned forward as Ryo whispered in her ear. "Ever since I saw you in that dress, all I've been able to think about is taking it off you."

Robyn just looked at him, eyes wide, the prongs of her fork barely touching her red lips. His deep blue eyes were sharp and serious, and they held her gaze. A look of full realization crossed her face and she flushed a light pink down to her arms. She didn't say anything, only looked thoughtfully at the empty chairs across from her. But she didn't pull away as Ryo continued to caress the back of her hand with his thumb.

* * *

The rain had petered out into a weak drizzle by the time Ryo's truck pulled up outside Robyn's apartment complex. It was warm inside the cabin and even Ryo had yet to move to open her door for her.

"You had fun, right?" he asked hopefully.

"I did," Robyn beamed. "I'm so glad we got to do this, even if we were all victims of Rowen's machinations."

Ryo laughed. "Yeah, that's our Rowen, always tricking us into having a good time."

"That Nikki must be the strongest woman I have ever met to want to stay with him."

They both had a good chuckle, but Ryo didn't add to the conversation. He didn't want to talk about Nikki or Rowen. Not when they were sitting alone together like this. He wanted to do something, say anything that would make this night last longer. Only he couldn't think of a single thing to stop her from getting out of his truck when she was ready.

Robyn rubbed her hands together and then tested the temperature of her nose.

"You're still cold?" Ryo asked, his mouth hiking up to one side.

"Of course, it's me. I'm always cold."

"Come here, Popsicle."

Ryo tugged her arm and she scooted closer to him. His wide, dark hands encompassed her pale fingers and they were icy to the touch. He rubbed them, skin on skin, thumbs pressing into her palms to get blood circulating. Ryo breathed heat on her chilled fingers and Robyn felt an excited prickle clear to the tips of her toes.

She found herself leaned against him, shoulder to shoulder, enjoying his touch and not wanting to leave his side. Ryo's attention was fixated on warming up her hands so Robyn took the opportunity to quietly watch him. Her eyes took in the broadness of his shoulders, his smooth skin, that thick black hair that made her fingers want to bury themselves in it.

Then Robyn looked out the windshield at her apartment building. The rain gathering on the glass made everything seem even more dismal and uninviting. While she had enjoyed the night, there was that constant niggling at the back of her mind. She dreaded going back home. The longer she lived there, the less she liked the neighborhood. It was haunting, restless, and it kept her awake at nights.

And there was the doll.

It was the main reason Robyn didn't want to leave the truck. She didn't want to go through that door alone. She didn't want to see if it had found its way back. She wasn't scared of it, she just didn't want to punctuate such a fantastic day with failure if it happened to show up again.

Why was she even considering going in there, into the darkness and uncertainty, when she could stay next to this source of warmth and light if she so wished?

With that thought, Robyn felt dumb. Why was she still making stupid decisions? With those two options set before her, why was she even having a hard time choosing? She really was an idiot.

"Ryo?"

He looked up when she said his name, sharp blue eyes illuminated by the streetlight outside. He watched her mouth move soundlessly as Robyn attempted to find the words. Her brain wasn't working. Just speak! Tell him.

"I... want to go home with you," she found herself saying.

Ryo took only a moment to let that statement sink in. Without a word, he put the truck in reverse and they pulled out of the parking lot, away from the dark windows of Robyn's apartment.

* * *

"Hey, Cye. Rowen just texted me that he and Nikki are heading back to Mia's place."

"Did he say anything about Robyn and Ryo?"

"Nothing you'd want to hear. But yeah, looks like it's just the two of us the rest of tonight."

"…Oh really?"

"Shut up, Cye."

"I love it when you play hard to get."

* * *

Walking up the stairs toward his apartment was different than any other time in Ryo's life. He had never gone up those flights with his fingers threaded in a girl's before. He could feel a heat at his back where she trailed behind him, as if she were the one to possess Wildfire. When they reached his door, it was with reluctance that he reclaimed his hand to fish for his keys.

Behind him, he felt her body lean idly between his shoulder blades and his fingers were suddenly blunt and clumsy. With a little bit of fumbling, Ryo managed to get the key in the lock. The two made it inside and out of the chilly air.

"Can I take your coat?" he asked hopefully.

Robyn gave him a small smirk, but allowed him to take it off her. Both were aware he just wanted to see her in that dress again. Robyn didn't mind at all. For tonight, he was welcome to look all he wanted.

Rubbing her arms, she slipped off her heels and wandered over to the couch where she could tuck her icy toes under her. Ryo shrugged off his dinner jacket, placing it over her shoulders before joining her on the couch. Robyn tugged the material closer, enjoying the extra body warmth that came with it.

Subtly, she sniffed the collar, mostly out of habit.

She had gotten used to Cye's smell during high school with how many of his clothes she pilfered. Kento's jacket she had worn a few times and borrowed a sweater from Rowen once. Sage, Robyn wasn't even sure if he had a scent. Maybe he just smelled like fresh air. She couldn't imagine anything else from him.

Ryo's smell was pleasing to the nose. It was campfires and wilderness in the summertime. His smell was strong, male, and she liked it. She watched him sitting there in his white turtleneck while she took another deep breath.

"White looks good on you," she said simply.

"Yeah? Mia and Nikki helped me pick it out."

Robyn smiled to herself at the thought. She would have paid money to see the two women dress him up. It was nice to finally be able to take some time to admire her date. Rowen had been a constant distraction. Even when his attention was completely on Nikki, Robyn was always aware of his presence. She couldn't relax around him anymore. Their overt canoodling didn't help either. Robyn wasn't sure she would ever be comfortable acting like that in public. Maybe that was also the reason she asked to come over. She just wanted some time with Ryo alone, no distractions.

"I'm sorry, Robyn," Ryo announced while she had let her thoughts wander. His tone sounded a bit regretful. "I have to take off this dumb shirt. It's driving me nuts." He scratched at his collar and Robyn recalled he had been subtly fiddling with it all night.

"Is it itchy?" she wondered, feeling the material on his arm. It felt fine to her.

"I just don't like tight collars. They irritate me after a while."

Finally, Ryo just got fed up and yanked the shirt over his head. He immediately realized he was a victim of habit. Living alone, he had gotten used to taking clothes off whenever and wherever he was in the apartment. He glanced sheepishly over to see Robyn had politely looked away, but not before sweeping her eyes once over his bare skin. She noticed his neck was a little red with irritation.

"Yeah, I'm gonna go... get something else..." Ryo said as he stood and retreated down the hall. He didn't want to make her any more uncomfortable than she already was.

Robyn allowed herself to take in the view as he left. She liked it better from the back. The tanned skin wrapped smoothly around his muscles, shoulder blades prominent. His well sculpted derriere was filling out those slacks nicely. Robyn slapped her palm to her face to stop herself. God, what was she thinking? It wasn't even the first time she had seen him without a shirt. What was with this reaction now?

She just wanted to hang out with him a little longer, not anything like... that. Even Ryo didn't look like he expected anything more than just her company. She had asked to come over and he didn't even bat an eye. He knew they were just going to maybe watch tv or something, nothing more.

A thought came unbidden, running her hands over that back and feeling the sleekness of the muscles beneath her fingers. Robyn jumped up from the couch to shake herself.

What was with these thoughts tonight? She was being ridiculous! It was that fancy night out and this stupid dress. It was making her brain react all weird. She had to get back to feeling more like herself.

Walking down the hall, Robyn knocked on Ryo's bedroom door frame without looking in. "Hey, do you think I could borrow something to wear?"

"Yeah, just a sec," came the response.

A second later, Ryo appeared, tugging on a T-shirt with a wide neck. It showed off his collar bones nicely. Robyn always had a thing for collar bones. She had to fight not to roll her eyes at herself so Ryo wouldn't notice her internal struggle.

"How about a sweat shirt?" he offered, producing a gray, pullover hoodie.

"Ooh, looks warm." She turned around to present her back. "Can you help me with this zipper first?"

Robyn squeaked a little in surprised when Ryo grabbed her arms and gently backed her into the bedroom so they weren't loitering at the threshold. He swept the hair meticulously from the back of her neck. Robyn waited, feeling his warm breath on her spine as he revealed her inch by inch. Even though she couldn't see his face, she still felt frozen under his gaze. Warm fingertips touched exposed skin.

He fingered the clasp of her black lace bra and Robyn's breath hitched. Ryo pulled it back and cheekily snapped it against her skin.

"Hey!" It didn't hurt any, but Robyn still tried to whip around, intent on smacking him in the arm.

But Ryo was holding her from behind, pressing her against his chest and preventing her from turning. "I'm just messing with you," he laughed in her ear.

Robyn's world was covered with gray as the hoodie was pulled over her. Her head poked out of the collar as Ryo hugged her again, pressing his mouth to her temple. Robyn beamed silently. Having his attention, his affection, like this was nice.

She squirmed a little, trying to get her arms out of the dress sleeves and into the sweater. The rest of the dress still snugly hugged her hips. She turned around in his embrace, idly fingering the lip of his collar, keeping away from those tempting collar bones even though she wanted to touch them. One of Ryo's hands pressed itself to her lower back. The other took her hand, rubbing his thumb against her palm. Their foreheads pressed together. Every now and then they would sway, just a little. It was like dancing; their own private song only for their ears.

Robyn idly wondered if this was what falling for someone was like. Not the sexy dress-up or fancy dinners, but enjoying the nearness of another body. It was finding so much calm and contentment in the other's presence that everything around just melted away. There was just his eyes, his breath, his warmth. And her flushed cheeks.

"I have something I want to say," Ryo whispered. It sounded regretful, as if he knew his words would break the spell of this night. "Robyn, I know you are strong and capable of taking care of yourself. I know I've been a bit of a pain lately, making you alter your habits to satisfy my worries. I want you to know that I want you to be happy. I want you to feel free and safe, and fearless. Even if none of those things have anything to do with me. But..."

He paused for a moment, letting out a deep breath. "I have this horrible fear inside me. I feel it in my heart, in my armor, that if you leave us this time we won't ever see or hear from you again- no one will."

Robyn stared at him with wide eyes, taking in the absolute seriousness of his expression.

"I don't want that for you," he choked out, "but I don't know what to do."

Robyn was the first to break the stare and she sighed a little with her shoulders. "You know what, Ryo? I don't know what to do either."

She stepped away, but took his hand, pulling them back to Ryo's unmade bed. When she tried to sit with a leg curled up under her, the tight dress prevented her movement. Robyn unzipped the thing the rest of the way and shimmied out of it. The sweater barely went to mid-thigh, but she didn't seem to care as she made herself comfortable amidst the sloppy blankets.

"I left Japan because I brought something bad with me. The darkness followed me here, and I brought something dangerous into your lives that you didn't need."

"But we defeated it," Ryo protested. "We saved you. That's our job."

"I know," Robyn said affectionately, taking his hand. "I know you live to help people- to protect them. Even though you won, Sage had horrible nightmares, Cye almost died, and none of you never really looked at me the same after that night."

"We would have all done it again if meant keeping you safe," Ryo insisted.

"Yes, I understand you would have every time. But the point is you guys shouldn't have something in your lives that constantly brings that sort of danger to you. That's me. I knew the moment everything was over, it wouldn't be the last. I'm a magnet, Ryo. Since that awful ceremony, I've been marked. There's always going to be darkness drawn to me and you guys don't deserve that."

"But-" Ryo was cut off by a finger to his mouth as he tried to interject.

"And I couldn't stand living with friends who constantly had to save me because I was so helpless," Robyn continued gently. "I didn't want that sort of life for myself. So I left. After meeting you five, I felt stronger. You guys gave me the courage to handle this on my own. That's what I've been doing all these years, handling the darkness." She looked him in the eyes. "And I've been getting stronger for it."

"The reason your wounds have healed so fast," Ryo realized.

Robyn shrugged noncommittally. "I don't know what it is, but there's something... extra in me. The more I fight the more it grows. But back to my point, I thought if I left, I'd be taking everything dark with me. Then I came back to find you guys have had it far worse than I could ever imagine." She threw up her hands in frustration. "I don't know what to do about it anymore."

"Stay with us," Ryo said softly, unrepentant.

"I wish I had stayed," Robyn admitted, her voice cracking a little. "I wish I could have been there for you guys when you needed me. I know you're glad I wasn't there, I know why you feel that way. But I wish I could have done something for you." She broke a little bit right then, eyes watering. "Why do I always make the wrong decision? Why can't I ever do anything for you guys?"

A sob escaped, even as she tried to fight it, and Ryo reached for her shaking shoulders.

"Hey, hey," he said gently as he gathered her in his arms. "It's okay."

Robyn let him hold her, though she didn't hold him back. She kept her arms against herself, as if ashamed to be so close to him; even though she pressed her face to his neck.

"You did do something for us," Ryo said, "You gave us a fresh perspective. You made us look at ourselves and realize we needed to find the courage to move forward. You helped us be strong. You were there for us when we needed you."

Robyn didn't say anything, just sniffled a little, still resting her cheek on his shoulder.

"And you make me feel safe, Robyn," Ryo admitted.

At that statement, she did sit up, dabbing at the corner of her eye with one finger. "I make you feel safe?"

"You do." He reached out, brushing stray strands from her face. "I trust you, Robyn. Maybe you don't tell me everything, but you don't lie to me either. You tell me up front when you think something is none of my business. I know you care about all of us, about me. I know you want what's best for me. And I know you will keep my affections for you safe," he gave her a rueful smile, "even if you may not feel the same way about me."

Robyn's face turned regretful at that last statement. Ryo watched as she crawled closer, then propped herself up on her knees. As she leaned against him, hands on his shoulders, his hands found her hips. It was tempting to know that only a few inches lower he would feel white, creamy skin instead of the material of his sweatshirt, but he left them where they were, silently looking into those big, green eyes.

Thin fingers played with the hair at the nape of his neck. Ryo closed his eyes and swallowed at the tremors her touch caused. Robyn brushed the hair from his forehead, tracing his features with fingertips. She followed the sweep of his brow, his nose, the line of his jaw. Ryo's grip on her tightened a little as she ran her thumb over his bottom lip before lightly brushing her mouth against his.

It was an odd feeling to care about one of her boys differently from the others. Robyn was still getting used to it. Sometimes it almost made her feel guilty, but then Robyn had to rationalize that her relationship with Wildfire did not diminish her love for the others in the slightest.

She deepened the kiss and Ryo finally allowed himself to react to her touch. He tugged her in close, pressing her body against him, digging his fingers in to feel her thin frame underneath all that material. One hand traveled up to cup the back of her skull and Ryo kissed her until she was breathless. Then he moved to kiss her chin, her jaw, and then lower to attack her neck.

Robyn squeaked and cringed when his mouth found her neck.

"You okay?" he asked playfully as he pulled back.

She rubbed her neck with her shoulder. "It feels weird. It's so sensitive right there. It, like, makes my skin tingle all over."

Ryo grinned. "I think that's a good thing." He leaned in to kiss the quickening pulse of her throat and she closed her eyes, tensing as if she were on a roller coaster. "Maybe I should pin you down until you get used to it."

Robyn's eyes popped open again, staring at him with a startled expression. Her whole face was reddening before his eyes. Ryo took the opportunity of her stunned silence to remove his shirt. Though that didn't help Robyn regain her senses any faster. She was frozen in place by the tanned, shirtless man sitting under her. It was his eyes that held her there. Usually bright blue, they were stormy and hooded as they watched her intently. Robyn didn't move, couldn't move, under that gaze.

Realizing maybe he needed to turn it down a bit, Ryo raised an eyebrow at her, changing the intensity of his expression. He smiled at her and Robyn let out the breath neither one of them realized she had been holding.

"Sure you're okay?" Ryo asked again.

"Yeah," she said, not meeting his eyes. "I trust you, I'm just... not used to it. I'm so clumsy with these sorts of things."

She sat back on her heels, almost in apology, and Ryo propped up his legs on either side of her, caging her in.

"Hey, it's just me." He tipped his head to catch her gaze. "You can be yourself here. Whatever you want to do, or not do, I'm fine with it." He took her wrist and pressed her hand to his bare shoulder to prove his point.

Robyn stilled again, unsure what to do. Timidly, she rubbed her thumb against the skin, noting the difference between his darker shade and her pale fingers. Her fingertips slid to finally trace over that tempting collar bone. Robyn felt an urge to put her mouth on it, to feel the texture and temperature with her lips, but she refrained. Instead, she let them slide down his chest and stomach before removing her hand from him completely, a bit self-conscious she dared to do that much.

Ryo sucked in a sharp breath. Her fingers were chilly, but everywhere she touched forged an icy hot trail of fire down his skin. He was on her before he realized what he was doing. Robyn was pushed backward onto the bed, the pillow cushioning her fall and Wildfire attacking her mouth. He felt a brief moment of hesitation, wondering what he just did, before thin fingers shoved themselves in his hair and his scalp sent tingles all the way down his spine.

He dropped to his elbows, pressing their bodies together as they kissed. Robyn responded, sliding her hands down his back, digging fingers into the muscles. Her bare leg pulled up at his hip and Ryo ran a hand up the thigh, moving higher to search under the sweatshirt. His hand ghosted over a quivering stomach as he moved to kiss her neck.

Robyn squeaked out a sound when he touched that sensitive spot again, and it turned all the blood in Ryo's veins into molten fire. Even as he lost himself further in her, she was pushing him away by the shoulders. She wasn't shoving so hard she was trying to get him off of her, but she definitely wanted him to back off a little. It was like lifting a great weight as Ryo managed enough self-control to pull himself away.

"Sorry," he rasped in a husky voice. Robyn had never heard his voice like that before. "We can stop if you want, but you need to tell me now, or I may not be able to the next time."

Robyn stared at him, eyes speaking volumes for her stunned silence. No man had ever approached her with as much warmth, with as much heat, as this man hovering over her. No one had ever looked at her with so much want. His face, his body, told her everything and it was almost too much to take in.

"Robyn, you need to tell me to stop," Ryo warned, even as he leaned in, his mouth almost on hers. His body was tense, as if it took all his concentration to be this much in control of himself.

She didn't. Instead she reached up and wound her fingers back in his hair. "I'm not telling you to stop," she said softly. "I just need you to take a breath. I'm not going anywhere tonight so just... calm down a bit, okay?"

It did calm Ryo a little, knowing whatever happened between them, he would not be forced to release her to the night afterward. She would be safe with him, under his protection until the morning light. His entire body visibly relaxed.

"So you're really going to stay?" he asked in a softer tone.

Robyn gave a self-conscious smile. "Well, your bed is pretty comfortable."

Ryo's lips curved into his own, shy smile as he leaned down and pressed a light kiss to her collarbone. "And we're not stopping, we're just slowing down."

She nodded, and the look in his eyes made her catch her breath all over again. Lust and affection, tangled beneath protectiveness and determination. Ryo's hand cradled the side of her face, keeping her gaze on his as he shifted his weight back down against her own.

"Slow," Ryo promised quietly as she reached for him. "Robyn, if that's what you want, that's what we'll do."

* * *

There was something about Kento when he was comfortable that made everything feel like the world was good and in the right order. Mia wasn't sure why, but even when crammed in her back seat, foot propped up in the front, Kento's contentment made her content too.

After dinner, Cye and Sage had practically dumped the Warrior of Hardrock on her, saying Kento needed a ride back home. For some undisclosed reason, Cye couldn't do it, even though he had been the one to pick Kento up. It was a set up in the most blatant way possible, yet Mia didn't mind. Kento had remained poker faced about the entire ordeal, but Mia silently hoped he wanted to be in her company as well.

Hardrock had asked her to stop to pick up a few beers. Mia wasn't sure what for until she had pulled up into the tiny alley behind the Faun family restaurant and Kento didn't even bother unclasping his seat belt before opening his first bottle and offering one to Mia. She had accepted that night, under the gray, miserable weather. No sound between them but the rain pelting the car.

The silence wasn't uncomfortable. It was nice just to be near each other, one not expecting anything from the other. Then Kento grinned and nudged her with his elbow. That was when the "Do you remember when?" stories came out.

Before Mia realized it, the pair were lounging in her back seat, her on her second beer, Kento on his third. Both were laughing and reminiscing about better times, back when the boys were sillier and the most stressful thing in her life was her job. Kento's leg was propped up between them and Mia was pressed haphazardly against the door, but it felt like they were closer than they had been in a long time.

His deep eyes looked upon her, relaxed and content. He took in her laugh as if seeing a rare miracle of nature and his gaze would often drift to her bare shoulder every time her top layer slid off.

"So, what's up with Rowen and Nikki?" He asked as a sudden change of subject when he couldn't think of any more stories. "You think this is going to be long term or what?"

Mia looked thoughtful as she took a long swallow from the bottle in her hand. "I think Rowen's back in his old habits already. He shows up, he teases her and baits her, and she rises to it even though she knows he's doing it. And I go to bed to their movie marathons every night."

"Every night?" Kento raised an eyebrow as he popped the metal cap off of his beer with one thumb, the only one of the Ronins that was strong enough to do so.

"Every night since you all came over. Since they're only throwing popcorn instead of insults at each other, it's actually been kind of..."

"Nice?" he supplied teasingly.

"Easier on the eardrums," Mia chuckled, looking at her almost drained bottle. "Maybe I should cut myself off."

"Naw, you're fine until you start calling everyone 'Rowens' instead of 'Ronins'. That's the Mia cutoff point, because after that, you'll start puking."

She smiled at him. "I liked tonight," she decided, looking out at the water droplets gathered on the window. "And yeah, it's been nice to see them happier."

They were quiet, and Mia snickered. "Your mom's going to be mad when she finds us passed out in another vehicle behind her restaurant again. She attacked you with a broom last time."

Kento chuckled and took another drink. "Ma thought I was corrupting you. After that last time, she told me that if I was going to have sex in inappropriate places, then I needed to at least molest you indoors."

Mia snorted. "Molest me?"

"Hey, I'm not the one that gets five beers in and insists on taking her clothes off. That's all you, babe."

"I get warm," she insisted, and Kento grinned over at her.

"We know. Why do you think we never let Ryo get drunk when you're drinking? He loses enough control to crank up the temperature, and then poof: you're naked."

"I am not!"

"Yeah, you pretty much are. That's okay. You're hot and Ryo's good at getting people naked. Which is why I'm still maintaining that he's getting laid tonight, not Rowen."

"Oh, Rowen's getting laid," Mia said, rambling somewhat drunkenly. "Ryo too. And maybe Cye and Sage are coming to an understanding. In fact, I think out of all of us, you and I are the only ones not headed for coital bliss tonight."

"Ouch. I didn't even make a pass and I'm already shot down."

Mia grinned at his mock hurt expression. "I hope you don't feel too bad. I'm still here with you, aren't I?"

Kento smiled at her, but didn't move closer even as he said gently, "Yeah. I liked tonight, but I like this too."

Neither one spoke for a moment, but their eyes had locked.

"Besides," Mia added, finally breaking their gaze for another sip, "it's taken me this long to not freak out when someone touches me without my expecting it. I can't imagine actually sleeping with anyone, never actually knowing…"

Mia's words fell away. Embarrassed at her admittance, she turned toward the window.

"Never knowing what, Mia?"

She hesitated, long enough for Kento's fingers to lightly brush her shoulder to catch her attention.

"It's okay to talk to me," he said to her, voice somewhat rough. "I won't tell them, you know I'll keep it to myself. And I'm not going to judge you, or be pissed."

Mia took a small breath and then said, "I don't sleep with anyone because I never know if it's really them. Or if it's Damian. Not just when I'm with someone. Sometimes I'll catch myself at work, or at the library. I look around and I wonder if it's real. Or am I still stuck in a lie?"

It was the first time she had brought it up, and she could tell that Kento was being careful, taking a slow drink before swallowing and clearing his throat. "You think about that a lot?"

Mia looked down, scratching her fingernails on the peeling beer label. "Not as much as I used to. It's been a while since all that and I'm doing better. I try not to think of much else besides work. The men I date, it's never anything serious, so it doesn't get that far. I don't let it get that far."

"But you think about it when you're around us," he said simply, because Kento had always been so good at understanding her. "Especially me."

Mia nodded, wordlessly. After a moment, she reached over and touched her hand to his. "I know it's you," she told him quietly. "But what if it's not? What if I think I'm having a beer with you, but I'm not? I'm somewhere else, in some other dimension? Betraying you just because I think I'm talking to you? Because it's been like that before, Kento. I could have sworn it was you, I knew it was you. Just like I know I'm next to you now…but it's always in the back of my mind when I'm around you that maybe I'm wrong."

She bit her lip and then smiled somewhat bitterly. "Sounds messed up, huh?"

He didn't reply instantly, because he was Kento. Not because he was any less intelligent than the others, but because he was a deep thinker. And he thought with his heart. He went over her words, and he thought about her and him.

He decided that maybe Mia could never love him the way he had wanted her to, how he still wanted. Kento was a warrior, and he instinctively understood the nature of battles. Sometimes you won, sometimes you lost, and sometimes not everyone came back. And those who came back would never be the same. Mia had been through war and she wasn't the same. But she had loved him once, and Kento wasn't ready to give up on her yet. He wasn't ready to give up on them yet.

"I wish... that I could assure you somehow," he said carefully. "That I could give you a way to know it's really me." He ran his fingers through his hair. "Too bad we didn't ever have like a... safe word or something set up before all that shit happened."

Mia stared at him, eyes beautiful and owlish. Then a slow smile curled her lips. It grew until she was grinning at him, eyes laughing. "A safe word?"

"Yeah," Kento insisted. "You know, like they have when…when a guy and a chick…" A flush of embarrassment came to his face and he cleared his throat. "Like when they are…you know."

Maybe it was the beer, she wasn't sure, but she broke down laughing. It was such a startling sound, Kento wasn't sure how to react at first. Then Kento had to chuckle, too. It felt good to hear her laugh, even if she was somewhat laughing at him. Mia was gripping the handle of the door as she tried to breathe between her laughter, so hard that she accidentally opened the handle and half fell out of the car. It hadn't stopped raining, and her face and hair were wet by the time Kento grabbed her and hauled her back into the vehicle. She was still laughing as he reached around her to close the door again, Hardrock grinning too.

"The safe—safe word is pineapple. Kento, it has to be pineapple!"

Mia was holding her aching side, unable to keep herself upright under her own power. She was leaning toward Kento, gasping face almost planted in the seat by now. Kento set down his beer and grabbed her with both hands, gently pulling her shaking shoulders over until they were both occupying the same side of the back seat. Mia was pressed against his side and he could feel the vibrations as her chuckles died down. She seemed content to lean against him as he rested an arm around her shoulder.

"It's really me, Mia," he said after a while. "Tonight it's really me."

Mia was quiet, her gaze far off. Her body relaxed against him, head resting on his shoulder. "Pineapple promise?" she asked, and he nodded seriously despite the little smile on her lips.

"Pineapple promise. Mia, it might take a long time, but someday you're going to trust me again," he rumbled quietly.

"It was never you I mistrusted," Mia whispered. "It was myself."

One of his hands smoothed over her hair while the other found itself tangled in her delicate fingers. Both were enjoying a pleasant buzz by now and didn't have it in them to move away from one another.

"Well I trust you, too" he slurred lazily. "You trust me, I'll trust you. That should be enough for now."

Mia said nothing, but snuggled closer as the rain pelted around them. From inside the restaurant, Kento's mother glanced out the tiny window and smiled.

* * *

Ryo lay in bed, watching the ceiling in the dark. The rain pelted the window and lighting streaked across the sky, lighting everything around him for an instant.

Robyn's sleeping body was snuggled next to him, warm and soft. Her arms were folded over her chest in slumber as if to guard herself. But her head was on his shoulder, so Ryo wasn't sure if she was subconsciously trying to protect herself from him or if she was just comfortable sleeping that way.

After what they had done that night, it was certainly too late to guard herself from Ryo's intentions.

She was sleeping in one of Ryo's longest T-shirts, her dress hanging up in his closet. Robyn had also put back on the pair of black lace panties she had been wearing. The same pair that had nearly caused Ryo to lose his mind when he saw them.

Laying there, awake in the dark, Ryo was aware of his Wildfire armor pressing a notion upon him. It now had a claim on the woman sleeping next to him. Robyn belonged to it, to them. And it would not tolerate anyone or anything taking her away.

As he had been with Robyn in his bed that night, Ryo had been very much aware of Wildfire in the back of his mind. The armor, that power that sunk deep in his veins was actively accepting her into his world as he touched and kissed her, listening to the beautiful noises she made.

A bond had been sealed that night, not just in his heart, but in a deeper part of himself. It kept Ryo awake, his mind wondering at the implications.

Was this how Rowen felt when he shared his affections with Nikki? Was it not just Rowen, but Strata who had turned his feelings toward her into a violent obsession? Was it the armor that caused him to be unable to let go of her?

If so, what was Ryo going to do if Robyn still left him after this?

The redhead breathed in deeply in her sleep and stretched. Her arm reached around him as she snuggled closer, pressing the bridge of her nose under his jaw. Ryo idly let his fingers wander through her hair. He did not regret this night, but the questions of what would happen after were keeping him awake.

In the dark, he felt Wildfire stir. He felt the power and the danger of the armor, causing his body to react. The thunder rumbled outside. He glanced at the girl sleeping at his side before slowly rolling over. Settling his weight on top of her, he gently kissed her awake before claiming her as his once more.


End file.
